A total of 104 Indians who had entered the US through donkey route and were living illegally were deported to Amritsar on Wednesday, 5th February. People from Haryana, Punjab, Gujarat and other states of the country reached the US through Donkey Route in order to fulfil their dreams.
As per Bhaskar, an illegal immigrant named Akash from Haryana shared his experience and revealed that a group of 150 people left for America through the jungles of Panama. They remained hungry and thirsty on the way. They saw skeletons everywhere. They slept near them. When they came out of the jungle, 50 people were left alive.
Reasons to go to US
- Good income: With the dollar’s high value against the rupee, people think that once they reach America, they will earn thousands of Dollars which is equal to lakhs of Rupees.
- Visa issue: There are certain visa rules to go to America. People have to pass the IELTS exam, but those with weak English skills often struggle. In addition, some people are not able to complete the visa formalities, so they have no option left except crossing the border illegally through the donkey route.
- Trend: In many states including Punjab, Haryana and Gujarat, migration to America has become a trend. Call it social pressure or prestige, settling abroad makes them feel proud. As a result, they stake everything and set out for America.
Following this, the agents lure them with the promise of guaranteed entry to US. They show them the dreams of guaranteed visa to America, a good job there and permanent citizenship.
They file for visa and keep on extracting money. When the Visa is denied and then they trap people to take them to America via donkey route. In order to facilitate this, agents collaborate with human smugglers, known as donkers.
People sell their land and jewellery to arrange money. Some people take loans to got to US. They take loans from banks give it to the moneylenders. Some people hand over their life savings to the moneylenders. They give around 25 to 60 lakh rupees to the moneylenders in order to go to America.
Donkey route to go to America:
The distance from India to America is about 13,500 km. It takes around 17 to 20 hours to reach here by flight. However, the same distance can be covered up in 15 thousand km by the donkey route. However, this journey takes months.
The most popular and first stop for donkeys in India is to reach Latin American countries. These include countries like Ecuador, Bolivia and Guyana. Indians get visa on arrival in these countries. This means that there is no need to get a visa in advance to go to these countries as visa is provided on the spot.
In some other countries including Brazil and Venezuela, Indians are easily given tourist visas. From here, they reach Colombia through the donkey route. Many people go to Latin American countries via Dubai and for this, they are made to live in containers for months.
The donkey route depends on how many connections the agent you are going through has in the respective countries.
After reaching Colombia, people enter Panama. There is a forest called Darien Gap between these two countries. Crossing it is considered extremely risky because of the poisonous insects and snakes present in the rivers and streams. This forest is also known for crimes.
Finding dead bodies of people in this jungle is not a new thing. If luck favours and everything goes well, people cross the jungle of Panama in around 10 to 15 days.
After crossing the Panama jungle, the next stop is Guatemala. Guatemala is a big coordination center for human trafficking. Here people are handed over to another agent as they move towards the US border.
Daler Singh, who returned to Amritsar, said that one has to stay hungry and thirsty for 3 and a half days on donkey route. Robbery, violence and danger from animals are common on this route. Many people die on this route.
If any person does not want to go through Panama forest, then there is an alternative route from Colombia. This route starts from San Andres. From San Andres, people can take a boat for Nicaragua, a country in Central America. From there, after travelling 150 kms by boat, they get transfer to another boat which goes to Mexico. Border police patrol in this river.
After this, people reach the US Mexico border where there is a 3,140-kilometre-long wall. Its height is 18 to 30 feet.
People enter America by jumping over it. Those who cannot cross the walls choose the route of crossing the Rio Grande River. Before going to America, people’s passport and identity documents are taken away from them. This is because if they get identified, they will be deported back to India.
What experts say:
Jalandhar's visa expert Ashish who runs one of city's top immigration firms speaking to True Scoop said that if people follow the right method, they will not face any problems. It does not cost 40 to 50 lakhs for a work visa or study abroad. This expense ranges between 8 to 10 lakhs.
He said that if people want to go abroad for studies or work permit, and if they are applying through a travel agent, then first of all they have to check whether the travel agent they are choosing is registered with the Punjab government or not. This information can be easily found on the website of the administration of the district in which the agent is working. Their list is updated there.
Additionally, all this is done online. It should also be checked whether the agent is registered with the Projector General of Immigrants (PGE) or not. Because these agents are absolutely safe. The complete application process is available on the official website of the destination country, where people can access all necessary information.
What happens after reaching the US?
As per reports, after entering America, people deliberately surrender themselves to the police. After this, they are put in jail. It is called a camp.
Following this a lawyer is hired to get people released from the jail. The expenses are borne by the agent or a relative of people. The lawyer convinces the court with his arguments and people get released from the jail.
People are given permission to earn and eat so that he does not become a burden on the country. Green card is obtained in 8-10 years. Getting green card means that people can now live permanently in the US and have the right to work. After 10-15 years, people get American citizenship.
In America, schemes are launched to give citizenship to illegal people. After paying some fees, illegal immigrants become a citizen of America.
In the jail, People are asked if they have any acquaintances living in America. If they say yes, that acquaintance is contacted and asked to fill an immigration bond in exchange for release. This is a kind of bail against which people are released from the refugee camp with several conditions.
The bond amount is given by the immigrant’s family to the agent from India. This amount can be around Rs 3 lakh 40 thousand to Rs 2 crore.
People are released from jail with permission to earn and eat. During this time, a case is filed against them for illegally crossing the border, in which they are required to be present in every hearing. Many people are also deported to India after being kept in refugee camps.