On February 5, 2025, 104 Indian nationals, reported to have resided illegally in the U.S., were flown back on a C-17 military aircraft of the U.S. at the Shri Guru Ramdas Ji International Airport in Amritsar. This is in line with an intensified attempt by U.S. authorities to root out illegal immigration.
Breakdown of Deportees by State
Among these deported Indians, a list of how many came from which state is shown below:
Haryana: 33
Gujarat: 33
Punjab: 30
Others: 8 deportees from different surrounding states
When they arrived, the deportees were taken to a hangar of the Aviation Club at the airport. Further investigations were done on each deportee’s criminal and immigration records. Officials from each individual’s home state were duly informed in advance for their smooth reintegration.
Official Response
Reiterating this, the Director General of Police, Punjab, Gaurav Yadav, said that the state has made available the required facilities and established special counters at the airport to facilitate the quick and easy return of the deportees.
Expressing concern over the matter, Punjab’s NRI Affairs Minister, Kuldeep Singh Dhaliwal, asserted that they contributed towards the economy of the U.S. and that necessary steps should have been taken to assure them to be granted permanent residency instead of being deported. He pointed out that many of them had entered the U.S. with valid work permits that had expired at some time in the past, making their stay considered illegal.
Vanek stated that the important aspect of migration is legality. He warned Punjabis not to opt for unauthorized routes abroad. Instead, the minister recommended acquiring relevant skills and education to open opportunities one could find globally, and he stated he would put forth these concerns before External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar.
Context of the Deportation
The deportation was one of the instances of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) endeavoring to enforce immigration laws. On October 22, 2024, there was a charter removal flight to India conducted by the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to repatriate Indian nationals who do not have valid authorization to remain in the U.S. This displays coordination between the governments of the U.S. and India over irregular migration and human smuggling.
Since the June 2024 issuance of the “Securing the Border” Presidential Proclamation and accompanying Interim Final Rule, DHS has reported a 55 percent drop in southwest border encounters between ports of entry. The Department of Homeland Security reports since then to have removed or returned over 160,000 cases and also organized 495 international repatriation flights to 145 countries, including India.
The latest round of deportations highlights the issues, challenges, and nuances of illegal immigration. They point to the need to promote legal recourse in migration and evoke cooperation between countries to reduce the level of unauthorized migration across borders.
