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Colombia earthquake kills at least 111_我的网站

A |     Washington, Oct 10 (UNI) More and more Indians are entering the United States from the Mexican border.

Since the beginning of the 2022 fiscal year that started last October, a record 16,290 Indian citizens have been taken into US custody at the Mexican border. The previous high of 8,997 was recorded in 2018, BBC reported.

Experts point to a number of reasons for the increase, including a climate of discrimination in India, an end to pandemic-era restrictions, a perception that the current US administration is welcoming to asylum seekers and the ramping-up of previously established smuggling networks.

While some migrants are coming to the US for economic reasons, many are fleeing persecution back home, said Deepak Ahluwalia, an immigration lawyer who has represented Indian nationals in Texas and California.

The latter group range from Muslims, Christians and "low-caste" Hindus to members of India's LGBT community who fear violence at the hands of extreme Hindu nationalists or supporters of the secessionist movement and farmers from the Punjab region, the BBC reported.

Conditions for many of these groups have deteriorated in recent years, international observers say.

Immigrants often see the US as "the ultimate gateway" to a better life, said Ahluwalia, the lawyer.

The enormous distances involved, however, make the trip to the US extremely challenging.

Traditionally, Indian migrants who arrive at the US-Mexican border use "door-to-door" smuggling services, with journeys arranged from India to South America.

They are often guided the entire way and travel in small groups with their fellow countrymen who speak the same language, rather than individually or with only family members.

These networks often begin with India-based "travel agents" which outsource parts of the journey to partner criminal groups in Latin America.

Jessica Bolter, an analyst at the Washington DC-based Migration Policy Institute, said that the number of Indian migrants is also rising as a result of a "ripple effect" that takes place when those who have used these services successfully recommend them to friends or family back in India.

"It naturally expands and draws more migrants," she said. "Of course, that doesn't happen without migrants wanting to leave originally."

Manpreet, a 20-year-old from Punjab who asked that only his first name be used, a vocal critic of India's ruling BJP, fled the country after being persecuted for his political beliefs, the BBC reported.

"From Ecuador I took a bus to Colombia, and from Colombia I took a bus to Panama," Manpreet recalled in an interview with the BBC from California. "From there, via a boat, I (went to) Nicaragua and Guatemala, and then Mexico and entered the US."

Even guided by seasoned smugglers, the trip to the border is often one that is fraught with dangers, including robberies and extortion at the hands of local gangs or corrupt authorities or extreme weather, injuries and illness.

These dangers were highlighted in 2019 when a six-year-old Indian girl from Punjab was found dead in the scorching desert near the border town of Lukeville, Arizona.

It was later reported that she died in temperatures of over 42 C (108 F) after her mother left her with a group of other Indians to go search for water.

UNI MR。    A powerful Monday morning earthquake has killed at least 111 and injured 87 in the west part of Colombia.         Colombia's President Abelardo de la Espriella, who came to office just three days before the earthquake, declared a state of emergency to expedite funding for the quake recovery with a plan to visit the disaster zone.    "I am at the forefront of the situation. It pains me deeply what the families and affected regions are going through," he posted on X.    According to information provided by Colombian officials by mid-afternoon, the destruction included 1,575 damaged homes, 37 homes completely destroyed, 61 collapsed buildings, scores of damaged centers of health, education and community, as well as 18 damaged roads and six airports.    Airports in Pereira, Manizales, Quibdo, Armenia, Cartago and Buenaventura suffered structural damage, and their flight operations were suspended, according to Colombia's Civil Aviation Authority.    The tremor was felt in Colombia's capital Bogota, which is about 400 kilometers from the epicenter, setting off alarms that prompted people to evacuate many buildings as a precaution.    "At this time there are no reports of injuries or structural damage, only some cracks in buildings," Bogota Mayor Carlos Galan posted on X.    The earthquake damaged the region's major cities including Pereira, Quibdo, Manizales and Cali.    Nubia Carolina Cordoba-Curi, governor of the Choco region, posted on X on Monday morning that "in the capital Quibdo there are injuries and severe damage to buildings".    She posted an update at 2 pm that 12 people were confirmed dead and 84 injured in Choco.    Other local authorities reported at least 40 deaths in the Risaralda region and 27 deaths in the Valle del Cauca region.    Rescue efforts to save people buried under the debris is ongoing.    According to the Colombia Geological Service, the earthquake epicenter was in San Jose del Palmar, Choco. It had a magnitude of 7.4 and a depth of approximately 103 km, making it the strongest earthquake recorded in Colombia in the last decade.    The earthquake was felt by neighboring countries Venezuela, Ecuador and Panama. It was followed by several aftershocks with magnitudes between 2.8 and 4.8, according to the agency.    The agency said that it's common for this region to experience earthquakes of considerable magnitudes due to activities associated with the subduction of the Nazca Plate beneath the South American Plate.    Near the end of June, Venezuela was struck by two earthquakes — with magnitudes of 7.2 and 7.5 — that were only 39 seconds apart. More than 6,000 people were killed, and tens of thousands of people remain missing under the debris.                    。

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