- One of the most vociferous campaign topics emanating from Trump’s Republican candidature was the burning issue of illegal immigrants that the local Americans were quite concerned about. Little wonder, Trump’s campaign struck a right chord with the die-hard Republican supporters who were expecting no less than a concrete action to address the long-discussed issue of illegal immigrants thronging the country in hordes. When Trump unequivocally went ballistic about ensuring the prickly issue of unlawful immigrants is addressed expeditiously no sooner assuming office, the supporters were convinced about the move. Without disappointing the core support group, the Trump administration has initiated requisite moves to deport illegal immigrants in earnest.
PC:Business Today
- As reported extensively in newspapers, the US administration has deported several illegal immigrants to their respective countries in the last few days. Even Indian illegal immigrants are being deported with the first batch arriving on a US military aircraft and landing at Amritsar recently. This must be an embarrassing situation for the Union Government compelling the administration to target people traffickers to curtail the unlawful practice forthwith. Yes, 205 illegal Indian immigrants from San Antonio, Texas have already landed in Amritsar. Unlike Colombia and Mexico, India has not made a fuss about the US deploying military aircraft to deport its citizens. The optics don’t matter when you’re staring at the prospect of receiving dozens of such flights.
PC:CBS News
- Make no mistake, the coming months will witness several flights carrying illegal immigrants will land. Understandably, the US has a ready list of 1.5mn foreigners to deport – 18,000 of them reportedly Indian. And that’s a tiny percentage of the 725,000 Indians staying illegally there. It’s embarrassing, not so much because of the military planes as the fact that so many desperate Indians felt they couldn’t realise their dreams in India. Further, many more in Canada, Europe, and West Asia and some even on the Russia-Ukraine frontline now. The list goes wide and far. It’s not the first time the US has deported Indians. Last Oct, a chartered plane returned 100 to Punjab. Altogether, 1,100 were sent home quietly between Oct 1, 2023, and Sept 30, 2024.
PC:Pew Research Center
- Of course, this hurts the almost 5mn ethnic Indians who are present in America legally and have built a reputation as a highly successful group. Two years ago, they had the highest median household income of $145,000. They also had a very high proportion of college grads. Contrast that with the Hispanic population that had a median income of $65,540 – less than half – in 2023. So, when a US military plane takes off for, say, Guatemala, and another for India, the cost in terms of national image is not the same. Thus, the govt must crack down on illegal immigration now. Govt should target gangs that run illegal immigration networks and, at the same time, focus on creating opportunities. Only then will Indians think risk and ignominy abroad are not worth it.
