US Truckers at Employment Risk; First Sikh Attains Fighter Wings in RAF

August

2026

Thousands of foreign truckers, including Indian drivers from Panjab and Haryana, have been put at risk in the US, as authorities canceled more than 28K non-citizen Commercial Driving Licences (CDLs). US authorities canceled the licenses, saying many truckers did not meet ‘English-language rules’ or came from ‘poorly-run driving schools’. The campaign grew after a fatal crash in Florida in August 2025 gained traction. Military veterans are now being recruited to replace these drivers. According to data from the North American Punjabi Truckers Association, between 130–150K commercial drivers in the US come from Panjab and Haryana alone, many of whom arrived in the past two decades, building careers as long-haul drivers or setting up their own transport firms. A US-based advocacy group Sikh Coalition, says roughly a third of California’s truck drivers are Sikh. Legal director Munmeeth Kaur said that losing a CDL means losing an entire livelihood. Thousands of drivers were given cancellation notices without a chance to respond or correct errors. The Trump administration said it had also worked with the states to shut down 9.5K driving schools that have helped these truckers drive in the US. Meanwhile, Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) officers conducted immigration status and identity checks at a protest site in Calgary on 12 Aug where hundreds of international students were demonstrating against rejected Post-Graduation Work Permit applications. More than 1K students, including many from Panjab, protested for 22 days, including through a rotating hunger strike. The CBSA flagged a dozen of these student protestors as ‘being possibly inadmissible’, who could be forced to leave Canada. The protesters are calling for rejected applications to be reviewed and for authorities to protect students who entered Canada under earlier immigration rules. Additionally, Indian-origin Flight Lieutenant Arshdeep Singh Dang made history by becoming the first Sikh to attain fighter wings in Britain’s Royal Air Force (RAF) since World War II. Dang graduated as a fighter pilot during a fast-jet pilot ceremony at RAF Valley in North Wales on 14 Aug. The RAF said Dang was the first Sikh trainee to graduate on Texan aircraft at its 4 Flying Training School under the UK Military Flying Training System. Born in Chandigarh in 1998, Dang moved to the UK with his family when he was six years old (earlier coverage).