Origin of illegal immigration to America found in Jalandhar

The distance between India and the US is about 13,500 km, traversed by air in 17-20 hours. However, 15 thousand km is the distance by the ‘Dunki Route,’ where it takes months. The roots of illegal entry of the youth into America start in Jalandhar, where agents had sent thousands of youths from Punjab and Haryana to America by paying Rs 50 lakh each.

There, this mafia business extending into billions is not only with complete protection from political personalities but also with the full support of the government and police. This is why human trafficking illegally has extended its roots from Jalandhar to Haryana.

Between 2005 and 2007, a well-known agent in Jalandhar created a new path for illegal entry into the United States through Greece, arranging visa appointments for Punjab youth at the Greek embassy and smuggling them to spend a few days in Schengen countries, giving them entry into the U.S. via Panama and Mexico.

It is not that there were no whispers of wrongdoing on the part of the government and the officials in this area but the local police and government did nothing. However, the FBI raided the Greek embassy and arrested many officials involved in the conspiracy, granting tourist visas along with a few youths in Punjab.

After the Greek embassy raid, this trade slowed for some time, until a notoriously famous agent near the Jalandhar bus stand detected a new route: Ecuador, Bolivia, and Guyana, countries in which no visa is required from India, for ‘On Arrival’ Visa is issued to Indians.

The process was initiated from there to take Dunky to Colombia, before crossing him into Mexico and then to the U.S. Agents also set up offices in Mexico from where they collaborated with the mafia to help him get across.

The Dubai route was currently active for the easy granting of visas to the youth of Punjab. Tourists bound for Dubai were crossing over to Turkey, Nicaragua, Guatemala, and from there to Panama and Mexico.

Human trafficking was a suspicion on the Airbus A340 traveling from Dubai to Nicaragua on December 21, 2023. 303 Indians in the plane stopped refueling at a small airport in France i.e. Vatry. By then, the French police got information regarding an alleged Human Trafficking case concerning the Indians on board the plane.

Afterward, the French police went to the airport and stopped the aircraft from taking off. The plane, operated by Romania-based Legend Airlines, was prevented from leaving Vatry Airport, situated about 150 kilometers east of Paris. Among them were also found 11 minors.

The recent cases highlighted that routes through countries of Central America, such as Mexico, and Nicaragua, were being exploited for illegal entry; especially Nicaragua is a prime offering for anyone seeking asylum in the US. According to a report by the US Customs and Border Patrol Force (CBP), 96,917 Indians attempted to gain illegal entry into the US in the year 2023.