The economic hardships of people living in poor and semi-developed countries have always forced them to migrate to developed Western and Arab countries. The desire of Indians to settle abroad is decades old. This desire has increased manifold due to the spread of advertising and media to every corner of the world. 
The explosive growth of population in our country, decreasing employment opportunities and the foreign dazzle have made the desire for migration so strong among the people that they want to go abroad by adopting all kinds of legal and illegal methods. Seeing this hunger of the people, travel agents have opened shops in droves in every small and big city and town. 
Cases of fraud on people who are desperate to settle and earn a living in foreign countries have become common. Travel agent scams are not new in India, but instead of learning from these incidents, people are increasingly falling prey to their deception.
The tendency to travel abroad illegally often proves to be dangerous and in this way, people have to face various kinds of difficulties while going to other countries. These days, a new lesson is being heard, "Dunki Lagna". In simple words, it is an illegal way of going abroad. 
The youth who returned from America the other day narrated heart-wrenching stories of their journey. They faced dark forests, cold temperatures, pirates, snakes, hunger and the threat of death. After facing countless difficulties for months, they reached the soil of America, but soon their colorful dreams collapsed. Within a few days of entering America, they were caught by the authorities. 
So far, more than 300 Indian citizens have been sent back to India in handcuffs and shackles in three military aircraft. The surprise is that these people who have returned include women and minor children. Each person has returned after losing an average of about 50 lakh rupees. 
Many have sold their lands and jewelry, borrowed money from relatives and today, having lost everything, they have become criminals and objects of ridicule in the eyes of society. Such incidents tarnish the image of the country globally. 
Except for India, the laws of every country are strict for undocumented foreigners. Incidents of deporting illegal immigrants from countries like the US are not new. During the presidency of Barack Obama, more than 2.5 million undocumented immigrants were deported.
In this way, the return of youth from abroad after losing lakhs of rupees raises many questions on the governments of the time. If good employment opportunities were available in our own country, our young generation would not have to go abroad. Although governments promise to provide jobs in lakhs, the reality is something else. 
In most primary schools, there is only one teacher to maintain and teach five classes. About 45% of government senior secondary schools in Punjab are running without a principal. The same is the case with central government offices. Whoever retires or is transferred to another place, his post remains vacant for years or is abolished. Governments need to tighten the reins on the “immigration industry” running across the country. Effective steps need to be taken for the rehabilitation of people who have returned from abroad so that the families who have been disheartened can be supported.

Davinder Kumar