Punjab: Of lost money, harrowing journey & crashed American dream
Akashdeep Singh, 23, of Amritsar’s Rajatal village wanted to settle abroad and lead a “successful life” just like his cousin who moved to Canada a few years ago. However, IELTS was a big hurdle, which he couldn’t clear despite repeated attempts.
He then went to Dubai and struck a deal with a travel agent for Rs 55 lakh to help him move to the United States. He is now among the 333 Indians who have been deported to India from the US in the past two weeks.
Akashdeep and several others like him with foreign dreams are feulling the burgeoning business of illegal immigration which is now worth billions of rupees and is spread across several countries and continents of Asia, Europe, Latin America and North America.
Agents with “good reputation in illegal immigration” charge anywhere between Rs 40 lakh to Rs 80 lakh. If on an average a deportee paid at least Rs 40 lakh to such unscrupulous agents, it would translate to Rs 133 crore by 333 deportees.
“This is just the tip of the iceberg. The government must thoroughly probe the channels and instruments through which these deportees fell into the trap of unauthorised agents to uncover the financial trail,” says Anil Vinayak, a retired banker.
As The Tribune team scanned different FIRs registered against the travel agents, it came to light that many of the deportees undertook the “Dunki” aka “donkey” route – infamous for harrowingly dangerous journeys — and travelled to over two dozen cities and over 10 countries to finally reach the US.
One such FIR states how a Punjabi youngster who paid over Rs 60 lakh to his agent was made to fly to Guyana, then to Guyana, Brazil, Bolvia, Peru, Ecuador, Columbia, Capurgana, Panama City, Costa Rica, Nicargua, Honduras Cancun, Sancuba and Tijuana.
“As more money exchanges hands and the agents in every country are well connected, newer routes have emerged. Indians without proper documents try to reach the US through countries like Bolivia, Brazil, Ecuador, or Colombia, even France to enter Central America (countries like Panama and Guatemala). Mexico is a difficult country to get in straight and you can be easily arrested on minor suspicion”, says a travel agent, who earlier dealt with the Dunki route and has now shut operations for past almost six years.
Another agent who continues to “offer assistance” to those interested to reach the US says that in past few months his agency network is using countries like the UK, Italy, Germany, Spain, and Turkey, and then heading to Central America on transit or visitor visas.
“This way they escape the jungles and also have air mode and car travel for most part of their journey until they make an attempt to enter US,” he adds.
Darién gap route
According to the police, many deportees have narrated harrowing tales how they were transported through the ‘Darién gap route’ which is a remote, roadless area covering both Panamanian and Colombian territory, which is the only possible overland crossing between South and Central America. Spanning more than 60 miles of swamp, dense rainforest, fast-flowing rivers and mountains, the Darién jungle is as remarkable as it is inhospitable.
“Reaching there, surviving and then travelling by foot for almost 50 km through dense rainforests from Columbia to Panama City is the route we explain in advance to the clients,” they say.
