New Delhi: The US deported a total of 1,563 Indian nationals between January and July this year, and the latest batch was sent back by American authorities last week, external affairs ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said on Thursday.
Most of the Indian nationals were deported on commercial flights, Jaiswal told a weekly media briefing. He said 1,563 Indians were deported from the US between January 20 and July 15.
The deportations occur only after the Indian nationality of the people are confirmed. The US authorities provide lists of people to be deported and the Indian side then confirms their nationality, he said.
“People have been coming in batches on commercial flights. Last week also, we had people who came back,” Jaiswal said.
While providing details of deportation from the US since 2009 in Parliament in February this year, external affairs minister S Jaishankar said a total of 15,668 Indians were sent back over 16 years. India’s focus, he said at the time, should be on a strong crackdown on illegal migration and steps to ease visas for legitimate travellers.
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{{/usCountry}}People familiar with the matter said on condition of anonymity that figures from the US department of homeland security suggested there are close to 18,000 illegal immigrants from India in the US. The American side had sent back close to 1,000 illegal migrants towards the end of 2024.
However, the deportation of more than 300 Indians in three US military flights caused a controversy as women and children too were handcuffed and put in shackles, and the matter was subsequently taken up by the Indian side with US authorities.
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In May, the US state department announced visa restrictions on owners and officials of travel agencies in India who knowingly facilitated illegal immigration to the United States, the latest in a series of steps by Washington aimed at tackling the issue.
A majority of the deportees are from Punjab and Gujarat, sent abroad on the so-called “donkey routes” by travel agents.