External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar informed the Rajya Sabha that state governments and the National Investigation Agency (NIA) have also investigated human trafficking cases.
18,822 Indians Deported from the US Since 2008
New Delhi: The central government informed the Rajya Sabha on Thursday that the US has deported 18,822 Indian citizens since 2009. Meanwhile, 3,258 Indian citizens have been deported since January 2025. This information was provided by External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar in response to a written question in the Rajya Sabha.
External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar informed the Rajya Sabha that state governments and the National Investigation Agency (NIA) have also investigated human trafficking cases.
According to government information, the highest number of human trafficking cases have been reported from Punjab. In a written response to a question, the External Affairs Minister told the Rajya Sabha that a total of 18,822 Indian citizens have been deported to India since 2009.
He said 617 Indians had been deported in 2023, and as many as 1,368 were deported in 2024.
"Since January 2025, a total of 3,258 Indian nationals have been deported by the United States to India. Of these, 2,032 individuals (approximately 62.3 per cent) were deported on regular commercial flights, while the remaining 1,226 (37.6 per cent) arrived on US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) or US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) operated charter flights.
Replying to supplementaries, the minister said the NIA established some years ago an anti-human trafficking division, and it has today a mandate to cover human trafficking. State governments have also launched investigations into human trafficking cases, he noted.
"The NIA has registered and investigated 27 human trafficking cases, resulting in 169 arrests and chargesheets against 132 individuals. The NIA arrested two important traffickers in Haryana and Punjab on August 7 and then in Himachal Pradesh, two more people on October 2," the minister informed.
Jaishankar said, as far as state governments are concerned, "The maximum number of trafficking cases is from the state of Punjab. The Punjab government has constituted an SIT and a fact-finding committee. As per information given by them to us, 25 FIRs have been registered against 58 illegal travel agents, and 16 accused have been arrested."
"In the case of state of Haryana, 2,325 cases have been registered and 44 FIRs have been registered and 27 people have been arrested. Also, one significant trafficker has been arrested by the state of Gujarat," he said.
Jaishankar said the Ministry of External Affairs remains engaged with the U.S. side to ensure the humane treatment of deportees during U.S. ICE/CBP deportation operations.
The Ministry has strongly registered its concerns with the U.S. authorities on the treatment of deportees, particularly with respect to the use of shackles, especially on women and children, the minister told the house in his written reply.
No instance of shackling of women and children has been brought to the notice of this Ministry since the 5th February deportation flight, he said.
