NEW DELHI: Nearly 18,000 Indians staying illegally in the US face deportation as the Trump administration has supplied a list of those it intends to send back.
India will verify the documents of these people. “If they are found to be Indian nationals, they will be accepted back,” sources said.
The Trump administration, which rode to power by promising, among other things, deportation of illegal migrants from the US, has officially taken up the matter of deporting nearly 18,000 nationals with India.
The number of deportations could go up to two lakh in the time to come as more cases of illegal migrants are being detected in the US. Among them are a large number of people from Punjab, Haryana and Gujarat.
The sources said verification and deportation were an ongoing process for the past few decades, adding that India had never stood for illegal migration. “Any Indian national found to be living illegally in the US will be accepted back if his or her documents are found in order,” the sources said.
The issue of illegal migration was flagged on Tuesday by US Secretary of State Marco Rubio at a meeting with External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar.
A US State Department statement said Rubio expressed the Trump administration’s desire to “work with India to advance economic ties and address concerns related to irregular migration”.
Any slack on India’s part in taking back illegal US migrants could potentially impact legal migration from India. New Delhi has, in the past, backed legal migration through student and H-1B visas, a large proportion of which goes to Indian citizens.
Indian citizens accounted for almost three-fourths of the 3,86,000 H-1B visas granted in 2023, according to official US data. In November last year, the “Open Doors Report on International Educational Exchange” said 3.3 lakh Indian students went to the US for higher studies in 2024.
The crackdown on illegal migration has been Trump’s signature campaign. Within hours of his inauguration, the new President moved to fulfil the promise as he pushed to end the birthright citizenship and mobilise troops on the US-Mexico border
After meeting Rubio in the US, Jaishankar said in a post on X, “Reviewed our extensive bilateral partnership, of which (Secretary Rubio) has been a strong advocate”.
He said, “Looking forward to closely working with him to advance our strategic cooperation.” Tammy Bruce, a spokesperson for the US State Department, said Rubio and Jaishankar discussed regional issues and opportunities to further deepen the US-India ties, particularly on emerging technologies, defence cooperation, energy and advancing a free and open Indo-Pacific region.
Jaishankar also met US National Security Adviser Michael Waltz. He posted on X, “Discussed strengthening our friendship to ensure mutual benefit and enhance global stability. Looking forward to working together on an active and outcome-oriented agenda.”