The Undocumented Return

OutlookIndia

US President Donald Trump’s shrill election pitch on uprooting all the "parasites" in America has directly led to Indians being herded into military aeroplanes under inhumane conditions and deported back to their country. The first Texas-Amritsar flight carried 31 individuals from Punjab, 33 from Haryana, and 35 from Gujarat, among others.  Daler Singh, a resident of Salempur village in Punjab, was among the first batch of 104 Indians deported by US authorities in a widely publicised transfer. A father of two and the sole breadwinner of his family, he spent his life savings and mortgaged 1.5 acres of his family’s farmland to pay an agent in India an advance of ₹25 lakh to take him to the US via the dunki route.  Mandeep Singh, 29, attempted every government exam he was eligible for with his commerce-based high school qualification. Holding up documents, he says, “I tried. I scored 86 per cent in my 12th grade. I used to bodybuild to stay fit. All I ever wanted in life was to join the Army, but there were no vacancies.”  According to US Customs and Border Protection (USBP) and US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), over 9.2 million people attempted to cross into the US illegally between December 2022 and October 2024. ICE arrested a total of 3,488 Indian nationals from 2021 to 2024.  Many recent deportees state that unemployment and low wages in India often push them to take such extreme measures. The desire to provide a better life for their families compels many to undertake the illegal dunki route, despite being fully aware of the extreme hardships and near-death experiences they may face en route.  Reporter: Avantika Mehta  Camera: Suresh Pandey  Script/Editor: Divya Tiwari   Follow us: Website: https://www.outlookindia.com/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Outlookindia Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/outlookindia/ X: https://twitter.com/Outlookindia Whatsapp: https://whatsapp.com/channel/0029VaNrF3v0AgWLA6OnJH0R Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@OutlookMagazine Dailymotion: https://www.dailymotion.com/outlookindia  #US #DonaldTrump #Deportation #DunkiRoute #Illegal #Migrants #IllegalMigrants #Immigration

Transcript

00:00I had become so ill-off because I didn't get a job.

00:03I tried a lot to get a job.

00:05I saw the police and the army.

00:09I used to do sports.

00:12I will settle down with my parents.

00:13My family won't be bothered by me.

00:16A flight from Texas to Amritsar.

00:19Not a ticket to the American dream, but a forced return.

00:22Humiliated, broken and in debt.

00:25The United States has deported 104 Indians,

00:29most of them from Punjab, Gujarat and Haryana.

00:36Daler Singh, Mandeep, Ajaydeep were among them.

00:40A young school graduate, Ajaydeep,

00:43dreamed of an American education, but had no legal way in.

00:47Families sell land, take massive loans,

00:50hoping their sons and daughters will build a better future abroad.

00:53Their paths were different, but they all ended in the same way,

00:57in chains and on a flight back home.

00:59Each had their own reason to leave,

01:01but all three followed the same dangerous road,

01:04the donkey route.

01:05I met the agent on video.

01:10He connected me on Instagram and told me

01:13he wanted to go to Spain and asked me to send him to a European country.

01:16I said, no problem, I'll send you.

01:18He gave me a tourist visa to Dubai.

01:20Then he gave me a visa to Armenia.

01:22Then he sent me to Serbia.

01:23I went to Spain in the 10th month of 2002.

01:26I stayed there for two years.

01:28I worked as a chef in the kitchen there.

01:32The donkey route isn't just one road.

01:34It's a web of uncertain paths

01:36where agents promise safe passage, but deliver nightmares.

01:40For many, it begins in states like Punjab, Haryana or Gujarat.

01:44These agents charge anywhere between Rs 40 lakh to Rs 1 crore.

01:49Families sell land, take massive loans,

01:52hoping their sons and daughters will build a better future abroad.

01:56I went to Armenia in a flat.

01:58It took me two or three days to reach Astoria.

02:03I crossed the Hungarian border in a pandemic.

02:07There was nothing to eat or wear.

02:09It's so cold in the Serbian donkeys.

02:12There was only a sleeping bag and food.

02:15The route often starts with a flight to a visa-friendly country,

02:18Brazil, Ecuador, Bolivia, Guyana.

02:21From there, migrants travel north through Latin America,

02:25facing jungles, oceans and human traffickers.

02:28For others, agents arrange direct visas to Mexico via Dubai.

02:32But even from Mexico,

02:34the final stretch to the US border is a game of survival.

02:37I went from a flat to Bolivia.

02:40Then Peru, Colombia, and then to Pernambuco.

02:46I went to Panama on a horse.

02:47Then I crossed the Chikad river.

02:49Colombia is a mountainous area.

02:51You have to climb a lot of mountains.

02:53You have to go by boat.

02:55The police arrested me in Mexico.

02:57My agent arrested me first.

02:59He was not an agent.

03:00His car was a donkey.

03:01He was a donkey.

03:02He didn't pay me.

03:06He didn't pay me.

03:07He kept me in a hotel in Mexico.

03:12He beat me up.

03:13He beat me up for nine days.

03:15He tied me up.

03:16I still have bruises here.

03:19Between 2018 and 2023,

03:22illegal migration from India to the US

03:25has surged from 8,000 to 7,25,000.

03:29India is now the only non-Latin country

03:31in the top five sources of undocumented immigrants in the US.

03:36The number of undocumented Indians in the US

03:38has grown by 70% since 2011.

03:43When we crossed the US border,

03:44we didn't have any immigration or marriage.

03:49We didn't have any marriage or immigration.

03:52We were not asked anything.

03:54We didn't get any granted number.

03:56We didn't talk to any lawyer.

03:58They kept us there for 14 days.

03:59They kept us there for 13 days.

04:01On the 14th day, they deported us.

04:03They told us where we were kept

04:06that people were released from there.

04:08Some people go to camps.

04:10We didn't know anything.

04:11We were told that people are released

04:12or go to camps.

04:13We didn't know that they would deport us.

04:14So we were deported.

04:16But why do so many Indians risk it?

04:19Because for many, staying in India is not an option.

04:22When I used to work, I used to pay 200 rupees per meter.

04:27I used to pay 500 rupees per meter for the electrician.

04:35I used to pay 500 rupees per meter for the electrician.

04:37I worked for two years.

04:40After that, I used to look at the uniform.

04:43I used to look at the uniform of the army and the police.

04:45I felt very bad.

04:46I didn't want to stay where I was.

04:49All my family members were upset with me.

04:53I was beaten up so much.

04:55My family members were happy that I came back.

04:58But I felt bad.

05:00Why did I come back?

05:01I troubled my family members so much.

05:03For me.

05:06The lure for America is simple.

05:08Dignity.

05:09Work.

05:09Money.

05:10Future.

05:14Even now, the cycle continues.

05:16Agents still operate.

05:17Families still bet everything.

05:19And for many, America will always be worth the risk.

05:22What lies ahead for the deported?

05:24No money.

05:25No land.

05:26No future.

05:27Only one certainty.

05:28Debt and the weight of the shattered dreams.

05:32I had some hobbies.

05:34I lost some of them due to unemployment.

05:36I was forced to leave my village.

05:38I was sent abroad.

05:40Today, I don't lack anything.

05:42I just yearn for my mother's love.

05:44My life is very beautiful.

05:46I left my village due to helplessness.

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