Over 2K Indians deported from US since Jan: Jaiswal

India has taken back 2,417 nationals deported or repatriated from the United States since January, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said on Friday, while at the same time underlined its push for “legal pathways of migration”.

MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal, confirming the deportation numbers, said New Delhi works closely with Washington to verify the nationality of individuals before accepting them back.

“Whenever there is a person who does not possess legal status in any country and is referred to us with documents, if there are claims that he or she is an Indian national, we do the background check, confirm nationality and then take them back. That is what has been happening with deportations from the US,” Jaiswal said.

The remarks came amid growing concerns over visa fraud, illegal agents and unsafe migration routes luring Indians abroad. The MEA said several Central ministries are working with state governments to crack down on illegal operators. Regular advisories are being issued, and Indians are being encouraged to use the government’s e-Migrate portal, which lists approved recruitment agencies, procedures for legal migration, and dos and don’ts for workers heading overseas.

On the recent case of Punjab resident Harjit Kaur, who was deported from the US, Jaiswal said her return was part of the larger trend, but stressed that India “stands firmly against illegal migration”.

He also flagged a disturbing pattern of Indian nationals being trafficked to Iran under false pretenses of jobs or onward passage to third countries. “Between Iran and India, there is a visa-free regime, but it is only valid for tourism. Agents have been exploiting this to send Indians for employment purposes. In recent months, several Indians have been kidnapped by criminal gangs after landing in Tehran,” he warned.

Reiterating India’s position, Jaiswal said, “Illegal migration undermines our efforts to promote legal migration. We want to raise awareness so that Indians do not fall prey to fraudulent job offers or unsafe routes.”