Apple isn’t happy about India’s demand to upgrade older iPhones with USB-C::Apple has urged the Indian IT ministry to make changes to its single charger rules, as adding USB-C to older iPhone models will make it hard for Apple to meet production targets for India’s manufacturing and export laws.
It’s also not like this snuck up on them. Governments around the world warned them very clearly that they had to get onto a standard. Apple dragged their feet the entire time, fighting it at every opportunity, until it went into law.
I don’t know what India’s law says, but I suspect it boils down to “All phones sold as new after XXXX date must have a USB-C charger”. Apple has the choice to modify the older/cheaper designs, or to stop selling them in that market.