The recent wave of deportations of Indian illegal migrants from the United States has once again exposed a disturbing reality ~ that desperation, ambition, and deception now travel hand in hand in India’s migration story. The return of dozens of young men from Haryana, each burdened with debt and humiliation, is not merely a tale of personal failure but a mirror to a social crisis long in the making. The so-called “donkey route,” which snakes across continents through jungles, deserts, and oceans, has become the modern equivalent of indentured passage. Only this time, the chains are financial, not iron.

The young men who embark on these journeys are not victims of circumstance alone. They are willing participants in a transaction that trades legality and dignity for the illusion of quick

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