The iPhone maker has bet big on India since it began iPhone assembly in the country in 2017, in line with the Indian government's push for local manufacturing

The Taiwanese firm said resumption of production at its Zhengzhou plant had seen a gradual recovery which has contributed to "double-digit growth"

The announcement comes after reports last month that the Taiwan-based manufacturer plans to quadruple the workforce at its iPhone factory in India

Foxconn's India expansion is central to Apple's efforts to shift production away from Covid-hit China

Vedanta's Agarwal said he supports Prime Minister Narendra Modi's drive to make India a semiconductor manufacturing hub, adding that "Foxconn is our technical partner"

The Taiwanese group, which is a key supplier for Apple, reported a 4% rise in first-quarter revenue despite chip shortages, supply chain issues and reduced demand for electronics

The plant, located in Tamil Nadu, was closed on December 18 following protests in the wake of a food poisoning incident

On December 15, almost 260 workers became ill with food poisoning at a hostel for workers at Foxconn's iPhone plant in an industrial park near Chennai in southern India.

The factory, which employs 17,000 people, is expected to restart production with 1,000 workers on Thursday. State official inspected workers' hostels, which firm reportedly vowed to upgrade.

Three of Apple's top contract manufacturers plan to invest a total of almost $900 million in India in the next five years to tap into a new production-linked incentive plan, sources say

A move by Foxconn, the world's largest contract assembler of consumer electronics, to increase Apple's iPhone production in India will help both companies reach a large, crucial market