International Desk

Illegal Indian immigrants have recalled the dire treatment they received from US authorities during their forcible deportation from the world’s richest country, and also the deaths they witnessed during the perilous journey to their “dreamland,” highlighting the dark reality behind India’s robust GDP figure.

With an over $3.5 trillion GDP, India is fast ascending the economic ladder, but the effects are hardly trickling down to the masses, forcing many to seek jobs overseas even at the risk of losing lives or suffering criminal convictions abroad.

Deportees who arrived on a US military aircraft in India’s Amritsar on Wednesday said their hands and legs were shackled throughout the journey, with the restraints removed only after landing, reports Hindustan Times.

Jaspal Singh, 36, from Gurdaspur district, Punjab, said he was captured by the US Border Patrol on 24 January. “We were handcuffed and our legs were chained throughout journey. These were opened at the Amritsar airport,” he claimed.

A US military aircraft carrying 104 illegal immigrants from various states landed in Amritsar on Wednesday. This marks the first batch of Indians deported by the Trump administration as part of its crackdown on illegal immigration.

The group included 19 women and 13 minors, including a four-year-old boy and two girls, aged five and seven.

After spending six months in Brazil, Jaspal crossed the border into the US, where he was arrested by the US Border Patrol.

Two other deportees, who arrived in their hometowns in Hoshiarpur on Wednesday night, also recounted the ordeal they endured on their journey to the US.

Deportee recalls witnessing death in Panama jungle

Harwinder Singh, who hails from Tahli village in Hoshiarpur, said he left for the US in August last year.

He was taken through Qatar, Brazil, Peru, Colombia, Panama, Nicaragua, and then Mexico. From Mexico, he and others were transported to the US, he said.

“We crossed hills. A boat, which was taking him along with other persons, was about to capsize in the sea but we survived,” he told reporters.

He recalled witnessing one person die in the Panama jungle and another drown at sea. Singh added that his travel agent had assured him of a route through Europe before reaching Mexico. He spent $48,000 on his journey to the US.

Clothes stolen on ‘donkey route’

Another deportee from Punjab shared his experience of the "donkey route" taken to the US. He said their clothes, worth $342-$400, were stolen along the way.

The deportee explained that they were initially taken to Italy before being transported to Latin America. He described a grueling 15-hour boat ride and a 40-45 km walk.

"We crossed 17-18 hills. If someone slipped, there was no chance of survival. We witnessed a lot, and if anyone got injured, they were left to die. We saw dead bodies," he said.