Is it déjà vu? Last March Patently Apple posted a report titled "Apple Supplier Wistron has been given the Green Light to build a Larger Assembly Plant in India to Expand iPhone Production." Apparently the deal that Reuters reviewed was never finalized because the news out of India today claims that a deal is very close.

India Times is reporting that "The information technology ministry has approved contract manufacturer Wistron’s Rs 5,000-crore plan to make high-end Apple devices, a move that will give a big push to the government’s Make in India initiative. Wistron currently makes cheaper Apple phones in India.

"We have just approved Wistron’s application and it is with the Cabinet now… Wistron will make the latest iPhone models," IT minister Ravi Shankar Prasad said in an interview, adding that another contract manufacturer Foxconn had submitted an application for another project on December 31.

Prasad said India offers three advantages — a burgeoning workforce, English fluency, skilled workers in plenty and the fastest growing smartphone market in the world. For more on this, read the full India Times report here.

Will the approval process stay in "cabinet" for another year or will it actually get finalized in a timely manner? We've proven that the approval has been bounced around for at least a year now.

If the deal goes through, it may give Apple the green light to put their flagship Apple Store plans back on track.  

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