‘Dunki route’ & treacherous trek through Panama tough terrain

CHANDIGARH: The “Dunki Route” has existed for sometime but gained significant attention after several Indians who used it to arrive in the US were deported.

Originating in Punjab, ‘Dunki’ means to hop from place to place. The Dunki route starts from South American continent primarily in Brazil.

From Brazil, the illegal immigrants enter Peru or Ecuador before travelling to Columbia. They then navigate the dangerous panama jungle which takes about a week to cross. While in the jungle they may encounter skeletons or dead bodies and pass through cross Costa Rica, Nicaragua, Guatemala and finally enter Mexico. From there they cross into the United States.

The entire journey is facilitated by agents who trap innocent and desperate people, especially the youth, who dream of making it big in the US.

Recounting the horror, one of the victims Harwinder Singh of Tahli village in Hoshiarpur district said that he was first made to catch a flight to Qatar and then to Brazil. Contrary to the plan of being flown to Peru, he was taken to Panama by road and forced to take the donkey route.

In almost all the cases, the immigrants would have either sold their land or took loans to pay fees ranging from Rs 30 lakh to Rs 1 crore to travel agents. The trauma doesn’t end here as these agents extract much more money than promised.

Another victim, Daler Singh of Salempura village in Amritsar said that he too was forced to endure the torture.

An illusive dream

A recent Bollywood film ‘Dunki’ had depicted the details of ‘Dunki’ routes, reason why people embark on it and what they encounter in foreign countries. The promise of higher incomes, opportunities and improved living standards, encapsulated in the ‘American Dream’, fuels the desire to migrate.