"Major boost for youth, women employment," Karnataka Commerce Minister hails Foxconn factory in Bengaluru

Bengaluru (Karnataka) [India], December 29 (ANI): The Karnataka state government has hailed the Foxconn fatory in Bengaluru as a new benchmark for manufacturing in the country.
State Commerce and Industry Minister MB Patil on Monday said, "Foxconn, the world's leading electronics manufacturer and a key Apple iPhone partner, has invested over $2 billion in its Bengaluru, Karnataka facility. Production has already begun, and the unit is projected to manufacture up to 20 million iPhones by the time the project is fully completed. The facility has already created around 30,000 jobs, with nearly 80% women, and is expected to employ up to 50,000 people in Phase 1 at peak capacity. This is a major boost for youth and women's employment in and around Bengaluru, and a strong step forward in building Karnataka as a hub for future-ready manufacturing.
While speaking with ANI outside the Foxconn factory, one of the employees who indentified himself as Sridharan, working as a technician in the testing lab, and working in the factory since last one-and-half-year said that the factory is providing jobs to locals which came as a "big help".
"We are producing iPhones here, and not marketing or selling. Just the core focus is on producing. This is the biggest factory in Asia surrounded in 400 acres," he said.
Talking about the employees strength, he said, "There are nearly 25,000 full-time employees, and contract laborers are around 50,000 to 60,000 which will soon reach 1 lakh."
Earlier, LoP in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi also praised the Karnataka government saying it had set an example where manufacturing could grow at speed and scale.
30,000 staff hired in just eight-nine months - the fastest factory ramp-up seen in India so far. This is not just a statistic. It is transformative job creation. What makes it even more powerful is that the unit is largely women-led, with around 80% women, most aged 19-24, and for many, this is their first job," Rahul Gandhi said in his post on X.
"Karnataka is setting an example by creating an ecosystem where manufacturing can grow at this scale and speed. This is the India we must build: jobs with dignity, and opportunities for all," he added.
Notably, Apple has been steadily shifting iPhone production to India, supported by the production-linked incentive (PLI) scheme launched in 2021.
Amid the geopolitical shifts, India has become a critical link in Apple's global supply chain. (ANI)