97K Indians Apprehended in 1 Year Entering US Illegally, mostly Panjabis & Gujaratis

According to the latest US Customs and Border Protection (UCBP) data, a record 96,917 Indians were apprehended while crossing illegally into the US between October 2022 and September 2023. The Indians apprehended for unlawfully crossing the US border have reportedly increased fivefold in the past few years. 63,927, 30,662, and 19,883 were apprehended in 2022-21, 2021-20, and 2020-19, respectively. Of the 96,917, mostly from Panjab and Gujarat, apprehended between October 2022 and September this year, 30,010 were caught on the Canadian border and 41,770 at the frontier with Mexico. Those apprehended are classified under four categories — Accompanied Minors (AM), Individuals in a Family Unit (FMUA), Single Adults, and Unaccompanied Children (UC). Single adults make up the largest category. In fiscal year 2023, 84,000 Indian adults crossed into the US illegally. As many as 730 UCs were among the apprehended. On 2 Nov, Senator James Lankford said that such people take about four flights including through countries like France to be able to get to Mexico, which is the closest airport, and then take a bus that is rented by the cartels up to the border to be dropped off for their final delivery. He reiterated that the criminal cartels in Mexico were training migrants across the world on how to trick officials and sneak into the country while awaiting an asylum hearing. The breakdown of how many migrants came from Gujarat, Panjab, and other Indian states is not yet available.