Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M.K. Stalin on Friday inaugurated the manufacturing unit of Taiwanese firm Pegatron that will make iPhones at the Mahindra World City, Chengalpattu, near Chennai.
The total investment in this project is ₹1,100 crore which will generate around 14,000 jobs. Pegatron is the third Apple vendor to set up its manufacturing unit in India after Foxconn (in Tamil Nadu) and Wistron. The plant has been set up under the centre’s Production Linked Incentive scheme (PLI).
Noting that it was a proud moment for Tamil Nadu that a top global brand was being manufactured in the State, the Chief Minister said the State would soon replace China as the hub for making new models of smartphones. He highlighted that Coimbatore, Chennai and Hosur were attracting investments in the electronics sector.
Mr. Stalin pointed out that of the 14,000 jobs that would be generated by Pegatron, a majority would be for women. “This is one State where many women work in factories. We ll ensure their safety and respect,” he said.
Rajeev Chandrasekhar, Union Minister of State for Electronics and Information Technology and Skill Development & Entrepreneurship, said this plant was the fifth biggest electronics investment in Tamil Nadu. The Centre was working with the State governments and was determined to create a conducive environment for investors from around the world. “Mobile phone exports from India in 2015-16 were near zero. They have reached around ₹50,000 crore now. India used to be heavily dependent on imports of mobile phones. In contrast, today, 97% of the phones used in India were products of domestic manufacturing,” he said.
“Pegatron Technology India Pvt. Ltd. was incorporated in July in Chennai and is the wholly owned subsidiary of Pegatron Corporation Taiwan. We were able to set up the factory with the support of the State government and the Centre,” said Jian Jong Cheng, chairman of Pegatron Technology India Pvt. Ltd.
