Engage US on deportations

India must engage with the US much more in order to prevent the recurrence of several of its students being denied entry into the US. Many students who had gained admission to a couple of Silicon Valley institutions, said to be under the scrutiny of the administration, suffered the indignity of the treatment that the US Border Patrol is known to mete out to visitors who do not meet admission criteria. There is clearly a glitch in the US system if those who have obtained F-1 student visas in US consulates in India and carrying the requisite I-20 forms are denied entry. An anti-immigration drive inconsistent with the US policy of encouraging international students would appear to be discriminating against a segment of students.

The government’s new advisory on travel to the US merely repeats the US government line that entry was denied to some students not because of the blacklisting of US institutions but based on immigration authority assessments of the young people being potential immigrants. Since the issue has also spilled over to the denial of entry to other Indian nationals on genuine visas around the same time, this is now far larger and needs intervention at a much higher level. Counselling sessions to keep students abreast of what documentation is required and how they should prepare to meet “barrier” interviews are necessary. Engagement with the US at the highest level would help at this stage to handle the crisis of a number of deportations over a short period.