Latest news with #ProjectElephant
Time of India
22-05-2025
- Business
- Time of India
Apple's biggest contract manufacturer Foxconn readies 300-acre iPhone making campus in India with dorms for 30,000 employees
As Apple looks to diversify its supply chain away from China, the Taiwanese firm is readying a 300-acre campus for its army of workers who assemble Apple products. The dormitories for plant's 30,000 workforce are in advanced stages of construction. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now Last week, US President 's statement to : "I don't want you building in India," made during his Qatar visit to Doha, appears to have had little impact on the tech giant's strategic plans. Despite Trump's comments, Cook maintains that the majority of iPhones destined for the US market will be manufactured in India instead of China, with the company steadily progressing towards this objective. Evidence of this commitment is visible at Foxconn's Devanahalli facility in Karnataka. Operations continued normally at the expansive 300-acre site of the Taiwanese contract manufacturer on Monday, including ongoing construction of dormitories, which are essential to Foxconn's operational framework, according to an ET report. The company serves as Apple's main contract manufacturer. Also Read | The Taiwanese electronics giant is allocating $2.56 billion to its Devanahalli operation. The facility, situated between Doddagollahalli and Chapparadahalli villages in Devanahalli taluk, is positioned 34 km from Bengaluru's Kempegowda International Airport. Foxconn's investment plan includes Rs 3,000 crore for phase 1 (2023-24), with a similar amount planned for the second phase (2026-27). Production targets indicate manufacturing approximately 100,000 iPhones by December this year, according to the financial daily. The residential complex has capacity for approximately 30,000 staff members, establishing it as India's largest accommodation facility of its kind, according to sources familiar with the project. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now The construction is scheduled for completion by December. Following its established practice in China, Foxconn has established residential quarters in Tamil Nadu, accommodating 18,000 workers at its Sriperumbudur operations. The accommodation facilities are specifically designated for factory workers, excluding management personnel. Also Read | Sources at Foxconn told the financial daily that female employees will receive priority for accommodation, as they constitute between 50-80% of the 30,000-strong workforce at the Devanahalli site. Project Elephant represents Foxconn's strategic initiative to expand manufacturing beyond China. In India, Foxconn and Tata Electronics are the main manufacturers of iPhones and related components. Tata's division has acquired the Indian operations of both Wistron and Pegatron, fellow Apple suppliers. Staff members indicated that assembly of certain iPhone models commenced in May, with additional variants scheduled for August production. With preparations intensifying for the iPhone 17 release in September, the organisation is prioritising the timely completion of its residential facilities. On May 1, Apple's Cook announced their expectation that most iPhones sold in the US during the June quarter would be manufactured in India. Foxconn maintains facilities across Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Telangana. Beyond the Bengaluru unit, they've established a new AirPods manufacturing facility in Hyderabad, expanding Apple's Indian production portfolio. This complements their substantial iPhone assembly operations at the Sriperumbudur facility near Chennai. Also Read |
The Hindu
20-05-2025
- General
- The Hindu
Farmers' association in Coimbatore sceptical of installing steel wire fences along forest fringes to prevent human-animal conflict
A farmers' association in Coimbatore has expressed scepticism over the effectiveness of steel wire fences at select stretches of Coimbatore Forest Division to prevent human-animal conflict. Referring to two stretches identified for installation of steel wire fences along a 10-km distance from Thondamuthur in Boluvampatti Forest Range and Thadagam in Coimbatore Forest Range, State general secretary of Vivasayigal Sangam said the Forest Department ought to evaluate the utility of the project rather than implementing it for the sole reason that funds have been sanctioned. A sum of ₹7 crore has been allotted by the Government for the project, it is learnt. While the iron fencing has been found to be useful along the plains abutting the forest, the utility is low at 'bottle-neck' points where wild animal intrusions happen mostly, Mr. Kandasamy said. He referred to the instance of Bannerghatta National Park where, in addition to the different types of physical barriers: solar electric fences, elephant proof trenches, rubble walls, concrete walls, concrete moats, spike pillars spike gates and mesh barriers, the Forest department in Karnataka was also exploring the utility of railway line barrier, by using steel rails from old railway tracks. The August 2024 report of a study carried out under Project Elephant, Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, Government of India and Wildlife Institute of India, suggesting measures to mitigate Asian Elephant-Train collisions on vulnerable train stretches also throws light on the effectiveness of railway line barrier. The Forest Department had, during April, stalled works on steel wire fencing in deference to a directive of High Court. The petitioner had called for stoppage of the works till elephant corridors are established.
Scroll.in
16-05-2025
- Business
- Scroll.in
Bengaluru: Foxconn factory turns rural town into real estate goldmine
This article was originally published in Rest of World, which covers technology's impact outside the West. Foxconn's arrival is quickly changing a rural town in southern India into a real estate hot spot. Devanahalli, located on the outskirts of India's tech hub, Bengaluru, is home to Foxconn's 'Project Elephant', a 13-million-square-foot site, roughly the size of 220 football fields. The $2.5 billion facility is set to be Foxconn's second-largest factory outside China and create 40,000 jobs. The factory is part of Foxconn's broader effort to diversify supply chains amid the US-China trade war. The company plans to double its iPhone production in India to up to 30 million units. Foxconn's Devanahalli project, approved by the local government in 2023, is the biggest in an agricultural belt known for pomelos, blue grapes, and silk, among other things. Property prices in the area have risen by 35% since Foxconn's entry, according to data from property consultancy Anarock. Still, resistance persists against the wider industrial push in Devanahalli: While many farmers have come around, some continue to hold out, demanding higher compensation for their land. 'Foxconn's entry is huge for Devanahalli – arguably a pivotal moment in its transformation,' Ashwanth Sajeevan, chief executive of a data intelligence and advisory platform for Bengaluru real estate, told Rest of World. 'It's like seeding a whole new city's worth of employment in Devanahalli almost overnight. Naturally, such a scale has a cascading effect: It boosts demand for housing, it attracts ancillary industries and suppliers, and it generally puts the spotlight on the region.' Foxconn has tied up with local real estate developers to house its workforce coming from China and Southeast Asian countries like the Philippines and Taiwan. Developers predict an influx of tens of thousands of workers, driven not only by Project Elephant but also by Project Cheetah – a Foxconn factory for electric vehicle components, under construction nearby. Developers are marketing properties within a 10-kilometre radius of Project Elephant as 'near Foxconn' – a strategy that has paid off, with listings doubling over the past three years. According to PropPulse, some 60 residential projects, including apartments, villas, and plots, are underway within a 20-km radius. Prices range from $40,000 to nearly $700,000 (Rs 34 lakh to Rs 6 crore). Driving back from a temple visit with family in December 2023, Neethu Ramagiri saw a billboard for luxury apartments in Devanahalli. The IT professional drove in to see the property, was offered an immediate discount, and sealed the deal for a 1,760-square-foot three-bedroom apartment. The residential complex was far from the city centre, and it didn't have a metro line nearby. The sales agents, however, pointed to Foxconn's entry and nearby infrastructure projects as guarantees of future demand. 'He [the property dealer] said, 'You just invest in it and the rent is guaranteed',' Ramagiri told Rest of World. A year on, Ramagiri's tenants are three senior-level Foxconn employees from the Philippines, China and Taiwan. She said she knew at least 10 other homeowners in the residential complex who had rented their apartments to Foxconn staff. Ramagiri said she now earns Rs 36,000 ($420) in monthly rent, claiming it was well above the average rate in the area. Since Foxconn provides catered meals for its employees, the minimal wear and tear on the kitchen has been a bonus for her. Meanwhile, the value of her apartment has appreciated by about 70% since she purchased it. Almost two decades before Foxconn broke ground, Devanahalli's industrial makeover was already in the works. The inflection point came in 2008, with the opening of an international airport, which set off a wave of state-led development. The government began acquiring land and building IT, aerospace, and science parks. These zones, combined with new and improved road links and still-affordable land, turned Devanahalli into a destination for large-scale investments, attracting giants like Foxconn. Foxconn has been recruiting for its Devanahalli facility through 2024 and 2025. Another iPhone supplier, Wistron – now part of India's Tata Group – is building a 1.4-million-square-foot facility, which is expected to generate 3,000 jobs. German software giant SAP is also establishing an office in the area. Before the construction boom, food delivery platforms like Zomato did not offer services in Devanahalli because of the town's narrow, broken roads, according to real estate dealer Ashish Jha. Now, Zomato and Swiggy delivery workers are fixtures at the many eateries in the area. Amazon deliveries are smooth, too, and the e-commerce major is moving its Bengaluru office to Devanahalli by April 2026. In 2019, when Jha first started selling real estate in the industrial area, under-construction properties were priced at Rs 3,500 ($41) per square foot, he told Rest of World. That number has skyrocketed to Rs 9,500 ($105), he said. There are now more than three dozen schools, several malls, and many state-of-the-art hospitals in the region. Foxconn has tied up with real estate firm BCD Group to house its incoming workforce in Hoskote, a town adjacent to Devanahalli. In mid-2024, the electronics manufacturer signed 900 three-year residential leases with BCD to accommodate between 6,000 and 8,000 female workers, Angad Bedi, managing director of BCD Group, told Rest of World. The municipality has bolstered civic amenities, reviving old wells, installing filtered borewells, and introducing wastewater recycling initiatives to convert gray water into a potable supply. In 2018, with backing from the Gates Foundation, Devanahalli became the first in the country to implement a low-cost, low-power fecal sludge treatment system. But the shift from farming to industry hasn't been without conflict. As land transactions continue across Devanahalli, developers acknowledge that negotiations with farmers remain complex and are often drawn out. For more than two years, a group of Devanahalli farmers has been protesting over 13 villages receiving notices of acquisition from the state authority, which will affect almost 1,300 families. Last year, farmers in Devanahalli staged a protest while fencing was being set up for Foxconn's land acquisition, claiming they had not received proper compensation for their land. Government officials did not respond to Rest of World 's questions about farmer protests. Farmers remain hesitant to buy the government's job creation rhetoric tied to the rise of the tech hub. 'These promises are not very new for the villages. … It's a very good fairy tale they bring every time,' Ramesh Cheemachanahalli, a farmer leader from Devanahalli, told Rest of World. 'But what are the preparations for the jobs?'. Cheemachanahalli said the government has not equipped farmers and their children with the education and skills needed for the jobs Foxconn will bring – and beyond a handful of roles such as janitors or gatekeepers, most villagers are unemployable at the factories.
Indian Express
27-04-2025
- General
- Indian Express
Forest dept installs 7 more early warning systems to mitigate human-elephant conflict in Himachal's Paonta Sahib
Aiming to reduce the human-elephant conflict, Himachal Pradesh Forest and Wildlife Department Saturday installed early warning systems at seven locations in Majra and Girinagar forest ranges of Paonta Sahib Forest Division. The move, under Phase II of Project Elephant, comes following the success of four previously installed solar-powered Animal Intrusion Detection and Repellent Systems (Aniders) in the same forest range. The new warning systems have been installed across the forest beats of Beharwala, Sainwala, Johron, Dholakuan, Satiwala, Batamandi, Dunga, Khararu, and Beas — areas where elephant raids on agricultural lands and villages are routine. Paonta Sahib has witnessed crop and property damage and deaths of two people due to elephant attacks in the past one and a half years. Paonta Sahib remains the only elephant-human conflict zone in Himachal Pradesh, due to its proximity to Rajaji National Park in Uttarakhand, and Kalesar National Park at Yamunanagar in Haryana. The area also hosts Simbalbara National Park. According to the Forest Department, at least two herds of Asiatic elephants regularly migrate between Uttarakhand and Haryana via Paonta Sahib. 'Seven new early warning systems have been installed at identified human-elephant conflict hotspots along the forest-farm interface. Aniders were first introduced in Himachal Pradesh in July last year under the Project Elephant & Tiger scheme, yielding positive outcomes in Dhaulakuan, Fandi Koti, and Satiwala. Hence, Phase II was initiated,' a senior forest officer told The Indian Express. Aniders use flashing lights and sharp alarms triggered by approaching animals, effectively deterring wildlife incursions. Since last year, 11 Aniders have been installed, mainly to control elephant movement, and at two sites (Paonta and Girinagar), they are also being used to manage leopard conflicts. 'A resident population of 14–16 elephants has now settled within the Paonta Sahib Forest Division over the past few years,' sources said. Raghu Sahai, a farmer from Sainwala, said, 'The incursion of elephants has increased over the last two to three years. Though we cannot stop an elephant's movement, we can divert it. The system installed by the forest department has been highly beneficial in protecting our crops.' Paonta Sahib Divisional Forest Officer (DFO) Ashwarya Raj said, 'The similarity in topography and the abundance of Sal trees in Rajaji National Park, Kalesar National Park, and Simbalbara National Park attract Asiatic elephants. Paonta Sahib serves as a corridor between Uttarakhand and Haryana. Aniders are proving very beneficial for local farmers, shepherds, and nomadic communities.' 'Apart from installation of Aniders, training and awareness programmes are being conducted in Behral and Majra blocks — key elephant entry points — educating locals on managing any conflict using beehive fences, and sound deterrents. A watchtower has also been set up in Behral for elephant monitoring and as a summer forest fire lookout,' DFO Ashwarya Raj adds. Community WhatsApp groups called 'Gaj Ghoshna' have been formed in Majra and Girinagar ranges to coordinate information sharing among villagers, forest staff, and Gaj Mitras (volunteer elephant guardians from local communities). Cost-effective apiary (beekeeping) initiatives are also being promoted to generate supplementary income for farmers and improve crop yields through pollination. Farmers are being trained to install beehive fences and use dummy bee boxes and simulated buzzing sounds to deter elephants from entering croplands. In March last year, a 45-year old shepherd Tapinder Singh of Shellai was killed in an elephant attack at Majra forest in Paonta Sahib. In April, 2023, an elderly woman lost her life in an elephant attack at Kolar Panchayat in Paonta Sahib.
