US military plane carrying deported Indians lands in Amritsar
05 Feb 2025

A United States military aircraft, the C-17, carrying 205 Indian nationals, landed at Shri Guru Ramdas Ji International Airport in Amritsar on Wednesday afternoon.

The Indian nationals were deported from the US for illegal immigration. They are mostly from Punjab and neighboring states.

This deportation is in line with the immigration policies of US President Donald Trump, who initiated a crackdown on illegal immigrants after taking office last month.

Punjab government prepares to receive deportees
Deportee reception

Punjab's Director General of Police, Gaurav Yadav, confirmed the state government is ready to receive the deportees.

He said, "We are in touch with the Centre. As and when information comes, we will share."

Counters have been established at the airport to ease the process.

The matter was also discussed in a meeting chaired by Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann with senior police officials.

Punjab NRI Affairs Minister expresses disappointment
Deportation criticism

Punjab NRI Affairs Minister Kuldeep Singh Dhaliwal expressed disappointment over the US government's decision to deport these individuals.

He argued that they have contributed to the US economy and should have been granted permanent residency instead of facing deportation.

Dhaliwal plans to meet with India's External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar next week to discuss concerns related to Punjabis living in the US.

India may accept more undocumented migrants
Potential repatriation

Reports suggest that India may be willing to take back as many as 18,000 undocumented Indian migrants from the US.

Earlier, India's Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said that it is ready to help bring back Indian nationals living illegally abroad.

MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said India is against illegal immigration as it is linked to organized crime.

According to a Department of Homeland Security report, there were around 220,000 undocumented Indian migrants in the US as of 2022.