According to an official cited by Reuters on Monday, a US military aircraft is deporting people to India, marking President Donald Trump’s second assault on Indian immigrants since taking office.
A C-17 plane carrying migrants left for India, according to the official, but it is not anticipated to emerge for at least 24 hours.
The Pentagon has begun deporting over 5, 000 newcomers detained in El Paso, Texas, and San Diego, California, using defense flights. So far, the military aviation have transported workers to Guatemala, Peru, and Honduras.
Military repatriation flights are expensive, with an alleged higher cost for a new flight to Guatemala, according to a Reuters report, which was reported on a new Reuters report.
In an effort to preserve strong ties and prevent a business conflict, the Indian government has indicated its willingness to work with the Trump administration to identify and repatriate its citizens who are residing improperly in the US.
We oppose illegal immigration, particularly because it is linked to a number of organized crime forms, according to MEA spokesman Randhir Jaiswal next quarter.
If an American national is overstaying or is staying in a specific country without proper documentation, we will take them back, provided they have documents to prove that they are Indians and that they are truly Indians. This applies to Indians everywhere in the world. If that is the situation, he continued, praising their return to India.
According to sources familiar with the matter, both governments have identified around 18, 000 improper American workers for imprisonment, though the actual range may be significantly higher, as the entire remains uncertain, Bloomberg had reported last month.
According to US customs and border protection information, India accounts for about 3 % of all illegal crossings in the US in governmental 2024, compared to a fairly small share of illegal immigration to the US.
In comparison, Latin American nations like Mexico, Venezuela, and Guatemala contribute a much larger percentage. The number of Indian unlawful immigrants has, however, been steadily rising, especially at the northeastern US border, where they now account for nearly a quarter of all illegal crossings, with the highest number of those who were stopped at that entry point.
A 2022 department of homeland security report estimated that there were roughly 2, 20, 000 illicit Indian refugees living in the US, though the actual number is still undetermined.
