Three workers die at Tata iPhone parts plant in Tamil Nadu

Three workers die during maintenance work

Three contract workers have died at a factory in India that makes components for the iPhone, according to Reuters. The men were working at the Tata Electronics facility in Hosur, in the southern state of Tamil Nadu.

The deaths happened late on 9 November 2026. The workers were carrying out maintenance at a wastewater treatment plant on the site when they inhaled an unspecified gas while inspecting an external nano-filtration tank, a type of tank that filters very fine particles from liquid.

The treatment plant was operated by Nalco Water, a water treatment company that is part of the US group Ecolab. The three men were employed by one of Nalco Water's subcontractors, the company said.

Apple, Tata and officials investigate

State officials say that Tata Electronics and Apple will both examine the scene, alongside the official investigation. Apple has sent a team to the plant to assist local authorities.

A spokesperson for Nalco Water said the company takes the incident extremely seriously. Neither Tata nor Apple has commented publicly so far.

Tamil Nadu's industries minister posted on X that the incident will be thoroughly investigated and that appropriate action will be taken based on the findings.

Production of iPhones was not affected. The plant was closed at the time for the Diwali festival, one of India's major holidays.

A plant with a troubled history

The Hosur facility has faced problems before. In 2024, a fire broke out in a chemical storage area at the same site and disrupted production for several days. Earlier this year, Tata Electronics was the target of a cyberattack in which hackers stole confidential Apple files.

The plant has also drawn scrutiny over environmental matters. Indian health authorities previously accused the facility of contaminating local water supplies, although regulators later dropped that accusation.

The site has an older history with Apple as well. Tata bought the factory from the iPhone assembly firm Wistron in 2023. Before that sale, Apple had placed Wistron on probation in 2020 because of poor living conditions for workers, which had prompted riots at another site.

Why the plant matters to Apple

Tata is one of Apple's most important suppliers in India. According to Reuters, the group is responsible for around 40 percent of India's iPhone production, exceeded only by Foxconn.

Apple has been steadily increasing its reliance on India for years, partly to reduce its dependence on China. Trade tensions between the United States and China, and the risk of relying on a single country for manufacturing, have both pushed that shift.

India has encouraged this expansion with planned tax breaks. By January 2026, India was reported to have exported 50 billion dollars worth of iPhones over the preceding five years.

What happens next

The investigation into the deaths is at an early stage, and the gas involved has not been identified publicly. It is not yet known what safety measures were in place at the treatment tank or whether any rules were broken.

The findings from the state investigation, and from the reviews by Tata and Apple, are expected to determine what action follows. Until then, the incident is likely to renew attention on working conditions across Apple's growing Indian supply chain, a topic that has repeatedly surfaced since 2020.