The repatriation of over 100 Indians, including 30 from Punjab, from the United States of America is a very serious issue. The families have lost their property to send them abroad. There is information that 17,000 more are to be deported from the USA in the near future. This is a very serious issue that needs discussion at every level to understand the reasons and find solutions.

Punjabis started going abroad in the late 19th century, but in the mid-20th century, the trend increased, and now everyone is going abroad for earning money. Punjab has been plagued by agitations for more than sixty years. All development, i.e., education, industry, trade, tourism, and even agriculture, needs peace and stability. The agitations were mostly political, initially peaceful, but Naxalites made them violent. Terrorism is again a violent way to get political power and is a product of Naxalite ideology.

The Sikh religion, the most popular religion in Punjab, only teaches love, service, and protection to humanity. The weapon can only be used for self-defense and protection of humanity, not for killing innocent human beings who have nothing to do with politics.

The army used to provide at least 8 percent employment to Punjabis before partition, and the British used to win world wars and strengthen their rule in India. Only in 1925 did they think of primary education for the citizens of India, before that, it was for the upper class and royals only. During the Khalsa Rule under Maharaja Ranjit Singh, 85 percent of rural and 87 percent of urban people were educated. However, it was stopped under the Macaulay policy of the British.

Very few schools and colleges were opened by royal families in Punjab to educate people of their state. No technical or research institute was built to teach and promote industry and education. After independence, agitations for the Punjabi language and Suba started, initially peaceful, but this gave no chance to the state to promote quality education and develop human resources. However, as it was peaceful, the new generation tried to get educated and compete for jobs in the army, civil, judiciary, and central services.

The industry also started business, and Ludhiana, Amritsar, Jalandhar, Batala, and Gobind Garh developed as industrial centers. In the early 1980s, the atmosphere of Punjab was vitiated on communal lines, basically due to the failure of governments to initiate the process of rapprochement and peace, further using it to make it a political issue to win the 1985 elections. Instead of settling the simple issue of holy cities, militancy was promoted, resulting in Blue Star and Black Thunder operations. The educational institutions became hubs for anti-national activities, resulting in the loss of quality education required for top central/state jobs.

The trend of leaving Punjab for green pastures abroad started to earn money, Arab countries, Europe, North America, and Australia became their favorite destinations. The continuous law and order situation for over forty-five years has spoiled two generations of Punjab. Everyone is terrified in this type of law and order situation. The government agencies, who are supposed to control crime, are allegedly involved in land, sand, liquor, and illegal drug trade, resulting in total fear.

The only way to get employment and save lives is to leave Punjab. The families want to save their children from drugs and crime by sending them abroad. Life in foreign countries is not easy, and it would take years to buy a home, and you have to do jobs that one is not keen to do in India. The immigration business has increased, which may be legal or illegal. Children are ready to risk their lives by following illegal routes, and the families are selling their properties to make available funds to the tune of millions.

These travel agents have their IELTS schools and sub-agents to allure innocent people. The subsequent state government in Punjab has failed to promote education, employment, and tourism in the state. This is a very serious issue that needs urgent attention and intervention. Punjab should not take it casually the police should arrest all these travel agents, prosecute them, recover and restore the money to the affected people immediately. Those who are in this trade should have their properties identified and blocked so that they cannot transfer them to escape accountability at a later stage.Let peace be restored, and there is a lot of scope in India as world companies are coming here to start their businesses. Instead of criticizing foreign countries for actions under their law, let's find fault within us to bring back Punjab to its old glory and motivate foreign countries to recruit our children for legitimate jobs.

Iqbal Singh Lalpura

Chairman - National Commission for Minorities

Government of India