Punjab man taking ‘dunki’ route to US dies in Guatemala

Days after 104 illegal Indian migrants were deported by the United States, an Ajnala resident died of a heart attack in Guatemala while attempting to sneak into the US through the ‘dunki’ route.

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Editorial: Illegal migration

The term ‘dunki’ route is used to describe an illegal way of entering a foreign country.

Relatives said the victim, Gurpreet Singh (33), a resident of border town of Ramdass in Ajnala, had left his home three months ago with an aim to settle in the US.

Paid Rs 36 lakh to agent

• Gurpreet Singh was lured by a travel agent who promised to send him to the US
• The travel agent told him that he could earn Rs 5 lakh to Rs 6 lakh per month in the US
• Gurpreet paid Rs 36 lakh to the agent by borrowing money from relatives & taking loan

“We came to know about the tragic incident only when a man who was accompanying him to the US informed us about it over the phone,” said Harpreet Singh, a relative of Gurpreet Singh.

Cabinet minister Kuldeep Singh Dhaliwal met family members on Sunday. He assured them that the Punjab Government would make every effort to bring Gurpreet’s body back so that the family could perform the last rites.

Harpreet said around eight months ago, Gurpreet came in contact with a travel agent who promised to send him to the US. The travel agent told him that after reaching the US, he could earn Rs 5 lakh to 6 lakh per month. A deal was struck between them at Rs 36 lakh, he said. Gurpreet, who was doing small-time work, was taken in by promises of the travel agent and he thought he could pull his family out of poverty by going to the US. His family borrowed money from relatives and took a loan to pay the travel agent. “The travel agent had assured the family of sending Gurpreet to the US without valid documents,” Harpreet said.

Six years ago, Gurpreet had gone to England on a work permit, but he couldn’t settle there and returned home. Dhaliwal appealed to the youth not to attempt to travel abroad through unauthorised means. He said they could start their own work here with the money they planned to spend on reaching abroad. The minister also advised them to pursue skill training.