CHENNAI, Oct 1 (Reuters) - Indian police on Tuesday said

they had detained 912 Samsung Electronics ( SSNLF ) workers

and union members for organising a street protest, as a strike

at the South Korean firm's home appliances plant in Tamil Nadu

state entered its fourth week.

More than 1,000 workers have disrupted production and

protested in a makeshift tent close to the factory near the city

of Chennai since Sept. 9. They have demanded higher wages and

union recognition at the plant, which accounts for a fifth of

Samsung's 2022-23 India annual revenue of $12 billion.

Charles Sam Rajadurai, a senior state police official, said

around 850 Samsung employees and 60 workers linked to labour

group CITU, which is leading the protest, were detained as their

protest march near Chennai was inconveniencing the public, and

was being organized without permission.

"They are being detained in four wedding halls," he said. "A

decision will be taken on their release later."

On Sept. 16, police detained 104 striking Samsung workers

for almost a day.

The protests cast a shadow over Indian Prime Minister

Narendra Modi's drive for foreign investors to "Make in India"

and is India's biggest such strike in recent years.

Samsung did not respond to a request for comment. It

previously said the average monthly salary of full-time

manufacturing workers at the plant is nearly double that of

similar workers in the region, and that it was open to

discussions with workers about resolving the matter.

The Samsung plant employs roughly 1,800 workers and more

than 1,000 of them have been on strike. The factory makes

appliances such as refrigerators, TVs and washing machines.

Another Samsung plant that makes smartphones in the northern

state of Uttar Pradesh has had no unrest.

A source with direct knowledge said on Tuesday Samsung

has arranged for some contractual workers and apprentices to

minimize the production impact.

The strike comes after Samsung's biggest union in South

Korea held a four-day strike in August demanding higher wages

and bonuses after talks with management

fell through

.

Samsung has warned the striking workers they risk losing

their jobs and also CITU members in court saying the strike is

illegal, but the employees disagree and say they will continue

to protest until their demands are met.

So far, Samsung has not agreed to recognize a union

backed by a third-party group like CITU, resulting in an

impasse.

Samsung workers earn 25,000 rupees ($300) on average

each month and demand a raise of 36,000 rupees a month reached

within three years, CITU said.