Apple Could Start Making iPads In India By This Year, Thanks To Govt Incentive

With Prime Minister Narendra Modi¡¯s efforts to promote electronics manufacturing and create jobs in the country, technology majors are looking to shift their production bases to India.

Reuters // Apple CEO Tim Cook with iPad

Apple has been on the same lines since long and a new report suggests that the Cupertino tech giant might be looking to expand its footprint in the country.

With the shift, Apple will be looking to take advantage of a new performance-linked incentive (PLI) scheme that the government of India is reportedly coming up with. Citing sources close to the matter, a report by Reuters mentions that the scheme will try to boost the local production of tablets, laptops and servers in India.

Under the new PLI scheme, the government will offer cash-back to manufacturers for exports. Expected to be launched by the end of February, the scheme will have a budget of up to Rs 7,000 crore over five years as per the sources.

Apple // iPad Air

With Apple¡¯s long-sought plans to shift its production from China to other countries, the company has been boosting the manufacturing of its products in India. Taking advantage of the Indian government¡¯s upcoming scheme, Apple is now reportedly also eyeing to produce its laptops and iPads in India.

It is, however, lobbying for a bigger budget under the scheme, to the amounts of Rs 20,000 crore. It cites that India doesn¡¯t yet have the ¡°scale or the supply chain for making IT products¡± as per the sources cited in the report.

Apple¡¯s push comes at a time its iPhone supplier Wistron is just restarting operations at a southern Indian plant after angry workers went on a rampage last year. Apple is yet to take the Taiwan manufacturer off of probation.

Majority of Apple¡¯s current assembly lines for iPads are in China. The tech major, however, is fast diversifying this production strategy to markets such as India and Vietnam. The shift in manufacturing capacity will also minimise the impact of the U.S.-China trade war and the ongoing pandemic on its business plans.

(Representative Image: Reuters)

The report mentions that the shift, hence, could take place as early as this year. Apple will likely give the contract for assembly of these iPads to one of its existing suppliers in the country.

¡°The government is asking Apple to get iPads assembled by its contract manufacturers here, the non-Chinese companies¡± a government official told Reuters.

It is easy to see how such an increase in Apple¡¯s production in the country will help India establish its IT industry and generate local jobs at global standards.