A day after the Modi-Trump meeting, a second group of 119 deportees from the US is set to arrive in Amritsar

Second Group of 119 Indian Deportees from US Arrives in Amritsar Amid Shifting Immigration Policies

A somber mood enveloped Amritsar's Sri Guru Ram Das Jee International Airport as 119 Indian deportees from the United States stepped onto home soil early Thursday morning. The arrival, just one day after Prime Minister Narendra Modi's meeting with former US President Donald Trump, marked the second such repatriation flight in recent weeks, highlighting the ongoing impact of America's stringent immigration policies.  

Families clutching photographs and folded hands waited anxiously outside the terminal as the chartered flight organized by US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) taxied to a stop. Many of the returnees—primarily from Punjab, Gujarat, and Andhra Pradesh—had spent months in detention centers, their hopes of building lives in America dashed by expired visas or rejected asylum claims.  

Among them was Jaskaran Singh, a 22-year-old from Jalandhar whose student visa had lured his family into selling ancestral land to fund his education. "We thought he would secure a bright future," his mother Harpreet Kaur said, wiping tears as she embraced her son for the first time in three years. "Now we face debts and broken dreams." Nearby, Raj Patel from Surat stared blankly at his worn-out sneakers, recalling how a routine traffic stop in Houston led to 11 months in a Texas detention center. "I paid taxes for six years at my gas station job," he muttered. "But one paperwork mistake erased everything."  

Volunteers from local NGOs and Punjab government officials had set up makeshift assistance counters offering medical check-ups, counseling services, and legal guidance. Amarjeet Singh of the state's NRI Affairs Department explained, "These individuals return traumatized and financially devastated. Our focus is immediate support followed by long-term rehabilitation." The Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee announced immediate cash assistance, while community kitchens served steaming plates of dal and roti—a taste of home for those who had survived on detention center meals.  

The timing of the deportation flight, following high-level discussions between Modi and Trump, has sparked speculation about unspoken agreements on migration management. While no formal policy changes were announced, immigration analysts note increasing pressure to address systemic issues like visa overstays and fraudulent documentation. "These flights aren't just about removals," commented Dr. Meena Chawla, a Delhi-based migration scholar. "They're diplomatic signals wrapped in human tragedy."  

As dawn broke over Amritsar, the returnees boarded buses to their villages, some clutching plastic bags containing their entire American lives. For government agencies, their arrival marked another administrative process; for families, it was the painful closing of one chapter and the uncertain beginning of another. With more deportation flights expected in coming months, the runway at Amritsar continues to serve as an unplanned bridge between shattered aspirations and hard homecomings.