Apple created over 1 lakh direct jobs in India in 2 years, says IT Minister

Apple on Tuesday opened its first physical store in India in Mumbai's Bandra Kurla Complex while the second one is coming up in New Delhi.

Published By: Shubham Verma | Published: Apr 18, 2023, 08:23 PM (IST)

The Apple ecosystem in India has generated over one lakh new direct jobs in manufacturing in the last two years, Minister of State, Electronics, and IT, Rajeev Chandrashekhar, said on Tuesday. The announcement came close on the heels of the inauguration of Apple's first physical store in India in Mumbai, Apple BKC. Also Read: Who is John Ternus? The successor to Tim Cook as Apple's next CEO

Apple's first own-branded retail store in India, in Mumbai, was inaugurated by the company's chief executive officer Tim Cook, who personally signed bought products for the first few customers. The company will also launch its second store in Delhi on Thursday. Also Read: Apple's CEO Tim Cook to step down in historic move: John Ternus to take charge from September 2026

"Propelled by Prime Minister @narendramodi's visionary PLI scheme @Apple ecosystem has generated over one lakh new direct jobs in manufacturing over the last 24 months," the minister tweeted. "About 70 percent of these are 19-24-year-old women, who are starting their careers, acquiring skills, and improving the ease of living for their families," he added. Also Read: Tim Cook addresses retirement rumours as Apple nears 50 years: Here's what he said

Apple has ramped up its India manufacturing and in FY23, the iPhone exports surged to over $5 billion from India. Backed by Apple, India's overall smartphone exports also crossed $10 billion for the first time in a financial year. Apple began manufacturing iPhones in India in 2017, and since then, the company has worked with suppliers to assemble new iPhone models and produce a growing number of components.

With the launch of its first physical store in India, Apple will bolster its offline presence, which so far has hinged on third-party resellers. Apple will launch its second physical store called Apple Saket in New Delhi's Select CITYWALK mall in Saket on April 20.

-- Written with inputs from IANS

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