Indian deportees from US reveal new ‘dunki’ route: How Europe is the link to the American Dream

How does one reach the American shores — the land of the ‘American Dream’? For many Indians, the ‘land of opportunity’ is possible only via ‘dunki routes’ — the dangerous and illegal method of crossing borders by hopping from one country to another until one reaches the final destination — the United States of America.

But as the US cracks down on illegal immigration — it has so far deported 333 Indians on three separate flights in February — a new trend is emerging that most who choose ‘dunki’ routes to the US are not opting for the traditional path from Latin America to Central America and then the US. Instead, they are going to America via Europe.

Here’s what we have found out.

Indians and the old ‘dunki’ route

Indians who wish to pursue the American Dream go to great lengths to achieve it, including using 'dunki' routes . According to an April 2024 Department of Homeland Security report, approximately 2.2 lakh undocumented Indians live in the US, facing the risk of deportation.

But how do they get to America?

Traditionally, these immigrants would seek the help of agents and human traffickers who would put them on flights to South American countries like Brazil, Ecuador, or Colombia, then hop to Central American countries such as Panama and Guatemala, and then enter the US.

More from Explainers

US military aircraft brings back 112 Indians in latest deportation drive 'We are not safe...': Migrants deported by Trump cry for help from Panama hotel; Indians among deportees

One human smuggler revealed that he would take his clients from Delhi to Dubai. From there, he would wrangle visas for different countries such as Guatemala, Panama, Costa Rica, and Cancun. From there, Indians have to make the most perilous part of the journey — crossing the Darien Gap, a treacherous route that stretches from Colombia to Panama. It connects southern Panama’s Darien Province and the northern portion of Colombia’s Choco Department. The Darien Gap is not for the faint-hearted; it is one of the most inhospitable regions of the world, consisting of mountain ranges, rainforests, and drainage basins full of swamps.

But that’s not all; Indians who use this route also have to contend with extortion and kidnapping. The medical aid charity Doctors Without Borders has reported a surge in instances of mass sexual assault in which hundreds of people have been captured, assaulted and raped — often in front of family members.

Editor’s Picks

1

‘More expensive than first-class’: Why did Trump use military plane to send back illegal Indian immigrants? 2

Why Costa Rica has agreed to take Indian deportees from US

However, if they make it through this perilous route, they reach Panama and from there trek on to the US where they hope to escape the clutches of Border Patrol agents.

Indians opt for the European route

However, this is not the case anymore. An increasing number of Indians trying to immigrate to the US illegally are finding new ways to enter the country — and one route that is becoming more common is travelling through Europe.

For instance, of the 104 Indians who were deported from the US on February 5, at least eight of them entered the US from Spain, five from Italy and four from the United Kingdom.

One of the deportees even outlined how he reached the US from the UK. “I left for the UK two-and-a-half-years ago and then I went to Europe and my agent made me take the ‘dunki’ route. I spent Rs 40 lakhs. The journey was not very smooth, I took the forest route and faced so many issues. I had stayed in England for two years. I got the agent’s number through Facebook. I went there for my livelihood. I reached America on January 24, 2025, and I stayed there for 11 days and when we were crossing the borders, I was caught. We were handcuffed and our legs were tied when we were brought back.”

But his tale is not an exception. Gursewak Singh, a 28-year-old, who tried to make his way to the US also recounted something similar. In a Washington Post report, he says that he first travelled to Dubai and from there taken to Istanbul.

An agent also revealed to the Washington Post that for a fee of $55,000 (Rs 48 lakh), he sends migrants by air to Italy then on to Mexico, and finally by bus to the US border.

Many Indians, it has been reported, have also used Serbia to gain access to the US. In fact, the country changed its visa rules last year after facing pressure from the European Union. This was because the Balkan nation was being used as an illegal transit route to Europe.

Agents and hopeful migrants both agree that the Europe route is far safer and less strenuous than the previous ‘dunki’ route, which is why an increasing number of people are opting for it.

But is the European route less expensive for Indians who wish to move to the US? Some agents say that the costs for both the European and Panama routes are similar — Rs 40-60 lakh, including the flights, visa and other miscellaneous expenses.

US deports illegal Indian immigrants

The issue of immigration and ‘‘dunki’ routes used by Indians has come under the spotlight as the Trump administration deports illegal Indians. On February 16, a US aircraft carrying 112 deportees landed at Amritsar’s Shri Guru Ram Dass International Airport.

Of the 112 deportees , 44 were from Haryana, 33 from Gujarat, 31 from Punjab, two from Uttar Pradesh, and one each from Himachal and Uttarakhand.

This came a day after another US flight ferried 117 illegal Indian immigrants — 65 were from Punjab, 33 were from Haryana, eight from Gujarat, three from Uttar Pradesh, two each from Maharashtra and Rajasthan, and Goa and one each from Himachal Pradesh and Jammu & Kashmir.

And on February 5 came the first flight of deportees, carrying 104 Indians — 33 each from Gujarat and Haryana and 30 from Punjab.

These deportees have complained of poor treatment by American authorities — including being shackled and chaine d, as well as being Sikh migrants being forced to remove their turbans , prompting uproar and anger.

With inputs from agencies