Three workers die at Tata's India iPhone parts factory in latest safety incident

Three contract workers have died at ‌a Tata Electronics factory that makes parts for Apple iPhones in India's southern Tamil Nadu state, the latest supply chain incident affecting the US company in its most critical manufacturing base after China. The deaths, which occurred late on Monday, will be investigated by Apple, Tata and the state authorities, ‌state officials and two other sources with direct knowledge of the matter said.

Roughly a quarter of the world's iPhones now come from India after ‌Apple expanded its manufacturing base beyond China. Salt-to-aviation Tata Group's wider electronics unit accounts for roughly 40% of iPhone assembly in India, with Foxconn making the rest. Tata's iPhone-making operations have also been hit by a ransomware attack that leaked documents linked to Apple's then-unreleased iPhone 18 Pro, and concerns about water pollution in recent months.

The three contract ⁠workers died ​during maintenance work on an effluent treatment ⁠plant operated by Nalco Water at the Tata facility, which is located in Hosur in Tamil Nadu, district official Dinesh Kumar said, adding that the deaths occurred when the ⁠workers inhaled gas while inspecting an external nano-filtration tank. Nalco Water, which is part of US-headquartered Ecolab , said in a statement that the three workers were ​engaged by one of its sub-contractors and that the incident occurred in a utility facility it operates. The company said it was ⁠working with local authorities in the investigation.

"We take this incident extremely seriously," Nalco Water said. Apple's team is visiting the plant to assist in the ongoing investigation, one of the sources ⁠said.

Tata ​Electronics and Apple did not respond to requests for comment. MAJOR INDUSTRIAL REGION

Tamil Nadu is a major industrial hub, hosting the factories of global giants like Foxconn, Hyundai, VinFast and BMW. Its industries minister said in a post on X that the workers' deaths will be "thoroughly investigated ⁠and appropriate action will be taken based on the findings".

Production was not affected as the facility was closed for the Hindu festival of ⁠Deepavali this week, the two industry sources ⁠said, adding that Tata and Apple will both investigate the incident. Production at Tata's Hosur site was also halted by a fire at the components plant in 2024.