A growing number of young Indians are undertaking perilous journeys to enter the United States illegally, reflecting a stark disconnect between India’s image as a rising economic powerhouse and the harsh realities faced by its youth. Government data shows that illegal Indian entries into the US have skyrocketed from 8,027 in fiscal year 2018-2019 to 96,917 in 2022-2023, making Indians the third-largest group of undocumented migrants in America, behind only those from Mexico and El Salvador.
In Karnal, a district in India’s northern Haryana state, empty houses and elderly residents tell the story of a mass exodus, reports CNN. Young people, facing unemployment rates as high as 45.4 per cent for those aged 15-24, are paying upwards of $50,000 to smugglers for what’s known as the “donkey route” – a treacherous journey through multiple countries and the jungles of Latin America to reach the US southern border.
Law student Ankit Chaudhary, who lost his money when his agent was raided, explains the desperation: “People have no source of income, no government jobs. Some people are hungry. I have no other option but to migrate.”
Dangerous journeys
The journey typically begins with flights from New Delhi through countries with favourable visa requirements, eventually landing in Latin America. Migrants then trek through dangerous jungles to reach the US-Mexico border, where many surrender to border patrol agents and request asylum. The human cost of these journeys can be devastating, as illustrated by the story of Malkeet, a rice farmer who was shot and killed by criminals on the El Salvador-Guatemala border while attempting the crossing.
Despite recent crackdowns by the Biden administration that have led to a dramatic drop in illegal border crossings, smuggling agents in India predict the routes will adapt and continue.
Shift from Mexican border to Canadian border
A growing number of undocumented Indian migrants are already bypassing the heavily guarded US-Mexico border, opting instead for the less patrolled US-Canada border in pursuit of a better life in the United States.
Data from the US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) shows a sharp rise in Indian migrants crossing from Canada into the US. In 2023, the CBP recorded nearly 97,000 encounters with undocumented Indian migrants, with the number of those using the northern border climbing from just over 2,200 in 2021 to more than 30,000 last year. This increase continues into 2024, with 22,399 Indians apprehended at the northern border in the first half of the year, more than double the 11,053 encounters at the southern border.
The CBP data revealed that an all-time high of 5,152 Indians attempted to enter America through Canada in June alone, showing that it has become a more preferable route than the US-Mexico border, reported Firstpost, quoting the Hindustan Times.
Why Canada?
According to the South China Morning Post, observers attribute the to stricter enforcement policies implemented by President Joe Biden in December 2022, which increased security at the southern border and limited asylum eligibility. “The northern border is less intensely patrolled, and those who can obtain a visa to Canada are more likely to take this route,” explained Muzaffar Chishti, a senior fellow at the Migration Policy Institute. “As numbers at the southern border declined, we saw a corresponding increase at the northern border.”
Canada’s appeal lies partly in its more accessible visa process. Indian migrants can apply for student or visitor visas, and Canada’s visa processing times are significantly shorter than those for US visas. A Canadian visitor visa can be processed in about 80 days while waiting for a US visa appointment in Delhi can take up to a year. Some migrants initially enter Canada on student or visitor visas before attempting to cross into the United States.
Some seek to cross into the US after failing to secure permanent residency in Canada or in pursuit of better job opportunities. Others want to rejoin their relatives or friends in the US.
Undeterred by deaths
However, the journey across the northern border entails considerable risk. In March 2023, the bodies of eight migrants, including a family of four from India, were found in the St. Lawrence River after they tried to cross from Canada to the US. Another family of four from Gujarat froze to death in January 2022, just metres from the US border.
Still, people embark on perilous journeys to enter America illegally, lured by the success of others.
In Karnal’s villages, the contrast is stark: elderly men smoke hookahs outside modest homes, while successful migrants send money back to build swanky bungalows with SUVs parked outside. These visible symbols of success continue to fuel dreams of escape, even as the risks grow more severe.
“People here know they will die from unemployment, so they think it is better to go and take the risk,” says Rajeev Kumar, whose brother Malkeet lost his life attempting the journey. “For people here, it has become do or die.”
This migration crisis underscores a critical challenge for India: It has one of the world’s youngest populations with an average age of 29, but it struggles to create enough quality jobs for its educated youth. As Prime Minister Narendra Modi promotes his vision of a “Developed India” by 2047, the exodus of young Indians willing to risk everything for opportunities abroad suggests a different reality on the ground.