Washington: Four members of a Gujarati family from Kalol were found frozen to death on the US-Canadian border last week, drawing attention to the harshness of American winter and to illegal Indian immigration from the northern border at a time US focus centers largely on its southern border with Mexico. The family consisting of Jagdish Patel, 35; his wife, Vaishali, 33; and their children Vihanga,12, and Dharmik, 3. They were residents of Nava Dingucha village in Kalol taluka of Gandhinagar. They were reportedly separated from a larger group of Indians who made it across the border to the US in -35 degrees celsius temperature. Their bodies were found just 30 feet from the US border on the Canadian side.
The Gujarat Police officers said that the security agencies of Canada, US and the Indian police will focus on the larger racket of illegal immigration. The officers said that the Gujarat CID has been assigned the task of unearthing the network of human traffickers targeting Gandhinagar and parts of central and north Gujarat. The family had left for Canada about 10 days ago. “Earlier, the traffickers used to provide entry to illegal immigrants from the southern border of the US with Mexico or from Havana in Cuba,” said a police officer. “But the US authorities have tightened controls on the southern border. So the preferred route for traffickers these days is through Canada. ”
Trudeau promises action
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau vowed action on human trafficking. India’s consulate in Toronto has sent a team of officials to Winnipeg in Manitoba to coordinate with local officials and law enforcement. Canadian police have also briefed Indian officials in Ottawa. Seven
other Indian nationals, linked to the tragic quartet found dead on the Canadian side of the border, were apprehended in the United States.
3 more missing
The investigation into the death has revealed more appalling details. The local agent responsible for their dubious migration had sent around 10 families to the US through the Canadian border in the past 3 years. And, of these, three families are feared to have gone missing. Since their journey westward, they never got in touch with people back home. The local agent, whose name has not yet been disclosed by the police, sent the Patels to Canada in the first week of January.
