一 | Washington, Oct 10 (UNI) More and more Indians are entering the United States from the Mexican border.
Since the beginning of the 2022 fiscal year that started last October, a record 16,290 Indian citizens have been taken into US custody at the Mexican border. The previous high of 8,997 was recorded in 2018, BBC reported.
Experts point to a number of reasons for the increase, including a climate of discrimination in India, an end to pandemic-era restrictions, a perception that the current US administration is welcoming to asylum seekers and the ramping-up of previously established smuggling networks.
While some migrants are coming to the US for economic reasons, many are fleeing persecution back home, said Deepak Ahluwalia, an immigration lawyer who has represented Indian nationals in Texas and California.
The latter group range from Muslims, Christians and "low-caste" Hindus to members of India's LGBT community who fear violence at the hands of extreme Hindu nationalists or supporters of the secessionist movement and farmers from the Punjab region, the BBC reported.
Conditions for many of these groups have deteriorated in recent years, international observers say.
Immigrants often see the US as "the ultimate gateway" to a better life, said Ahluwalia, the lawyer.
The enormous distances involved, however, make the trip to the US extremely challenging.
Traditionally, Indian migrants who arrive at the US-Mexican border use "door-to-door" smuggling services, with journeys arranged from India to South America.
They are often guided the entire way and travel in small groups with their fellow countrymen who speak the same language, rather than individually or with only family members.
These networks often begin with India-based "travel agents" which outsource parts of the journey to partner criminal groups in Latin America.
Jessica Bolter, an analyst at the Washington DC-based Migration Policy Institute, said that the number of Indian migrants is also rising as a result of a "ripple effect" that takes place when those who have used these services successfully recommend them to friends or family back in India.
"It naturally expands and draws more migrants," she said. "Of course, that doesn't happen without migrants wanting to leave originally."
Manpreet, a 20-year-old from Punjab who asked that only his first name be used, a vocal critic of India's ruling BJP, fled the country after being persecuted for his political beliefs, the BBC reported.
"From Ecuador I took a bus to Colombia, and from Colombia I took a bus to Panama," Manpreet recalled in an interview with the BBC from California. "From there, via a boat, I (went to) Nicaragua and Guatemala, and then Mexico and entered the US."
Even guided by seasoned smugglers, the trip to the border is often one that is fraught with dangers, including robberies and extortion at the hands of local gangs or corrupt authorities or extreme weather, injuries and illness.
These dangers were highlighted in 2019 when a six-year-old Indian girl from Punjab was found dead in the scorching desert near the border town of Lukeville, Arizona.
It was later reported that she died in temperatures of over 42 C (108 F) after her mother left her with a group of other Indians to go search for water.
UNI MR。 국토부, 내곡동·올림픽선수촌 인근 등 서울 그린벨트 제외 공식화 ▲ 김윤덕 국토교통부 장관이 26일 서울 모처의 한 식당에서 용산공원을 활용한 주택 공급 등 서울 주택 문제를 오세훈 서울시장과 협의하기 위해 이동하고 있다. 연합뉴스정부가 이르면 9월 말 내놓을 추가 신규 공공주택지구에 용산공원과 서울 개발제한구역(그린벨트)은 포함되지 않을 전망이다.김윤덕 국토교통부 장관은 26일 오세훈 서울시장과의 면담을 앞두고 취재진과 만나 추가 택지에 용산이 들어가는지 묻는 질문에 "원래 용산은 들어가지 않았다"고 선을 그었다. 추가 물량인 7만3000가구가 경기도 부지로만 채워질 가능성에 대해서는 구체적 언급을 피하며 "천천히 기다려보자는 것"이라고 답했다.앞서 정부는 8·13 대책을 통해 서울 강서, 경기 남양주, 경기 광주 등 3개 지역에 신규 택지를 조성해 2030년까지 2만7000가구를 착공하겠다고 발표한 바 있다. 여기에 더해 '7만3000가구+α' 규모의 추가 택지도 행정절차를 거쳐 이르면 9월 말 공개하겠다고 밝혔다.추가 택지 후보로는 그동안 △서초구 내곡동 예비군훈련장 △강남구 세곡·자곡동 △수서차량기지 △송파구 방이동 올림픽선수촌 인근 등 서울 내 그린벨트가 거론돼왔다. 하지만 서울시가 그린벨트 해제를 통한 주택 공급에 강하게 반대해온 만큼 실제 반영 여부는 불투명하다는 관측이 많았다.용산 어린이정원 등 용산공원 본체 부지를 주택 용지로 활용하는 방안 역시 정부 내부에서 검토돼왔으나, 서울시의 반대에 부딪힌 상태다.이런 분위기 속에 이번 추가 택지는 경기도 위주로 짜일 가능성이 커지고 있다. 국토부 관계자는 김 장관의 발언에 대해 "7만3000가구에 서울이 들어가지 않는다고 장관이 확정적으로 말씀하신 것"이라고 설명했다. #7만3000가구 #용산공원 #그린벨트 #공공택지 #경기도。
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