Deported along with 103 other Indians, 41-year-old Daler Singh’s journey to the United States (US) was full of miseries.
A resident of Salempura village in Amritsar district, Daler Singh, a father of a 10-year-old son and 6-year-old daughter, claims that the donkey route was not his choice and the agents forced him.
Before leaving for the US, Daler, a taxi driver drew a salary of ₹10,000, and to arrange ₹50-55 lakh fund, he mortgaged his agricultural land and borrowed money from his relatives and friends on interest.
He left home on August 15 last year and reached the US border on January 15 only to be deported on February 5.
“The agents, based in Dubai and Punjab, promised me that I would be taken to the US legally. However, they betrayed us. I first went to Dubai on a visa and from there flew to Brazil. In Brazil, the agents kept promising us for two months that our US visas were being arranged. Till then, we had paid half of the money to them. Then, they asked us to opt for the donkey route. We were caught in a Catch-22 situation, as this would have meant losing half of the amount already paid to agents. We did not have a way out”, he said.
Daler said a group of 10 persons travelled through the South American countries including Panama, Guatemala, Honduras to reach Mexico.
{{/usCountry}}Daler said a group of 10 persons travelled through the South American countries including Panama, Guatemala, Honduras to reach Mexico.
{{/usCountry}}“We crossed dangerous forests of Panama in three days and had to cover a distance of more than 120 km in three days. During travel, the agents tortured many youths. It was a horrible experience. I was also robbed of my money,” he added. Daler was detained soon after he crossed over to the US.
“They kept us detained for 20 days. The detention was also full of torture. They did not allow us to sleep for more than two hours. After 20 days, we Indians were separated from the group of other detainees. We were handcuffed and shackled and ferried to a plane in buses. We were in handcuffs and shackles for more than 36 hours of journey. They did provide us with food and medical assistance. We got to know about our deportation only when we landed at Amritsar airport,” Daler said.
Daler said the mountain of debt is his biggest worry.
“I request the government to help us. We are broken financially. We also appeal to the government to take measures to ensure that the agents who trapped us return our money. Action should be taken against them. I would advise all the youths not to commit this mistake”, he added.
Saw people dying on way to US: Jaspal
Jaspal Singh, in his early thirties, is glad to be back home. Jaspal took a longer route via Europe to Latin America to try and enter the US.
A resident of Fatehgarh Churian, a small town in Gurdaspur district, Jaspal left his home in February 2024. He had put everything in his savings ( ₹40 lakh) on the line in the hope of a better future.
“I had an agreement with an agent to be sent to America legally on a valid visa, but I was deceived. The deal was stuck at ₹40 lakh and I lost all my money. I first travelled from Punjab to Europe, believing I was going legally. From there, I went to Brazil and eventually had to take the ‘donkey’ route, which took six months,” Jaspal said.
He added his group passed through the Panama forests where he saw people dying. “But nothing stopped over the journey as agents kept us on a tight leash. I saw some of the members of my group die there. I also saw dead bodies on the way. Though I have borne great financial loss, I am happy that I am back safe”.