Trapped in India, far from family

In early March, Mrs Poorva Dixit rushed to buy a ticket to India from the United States, her home for more than a decade, after she learnt her 72-year-old mother had fallen from her bed and was in critical condition.

She decided to leave her two young children and husband in California because of the risks of the novel coronavirus spreading around the world.

Mrs Dixit and her husband are both Indian nationals while their children are US citizens.

A software developer with a temporary permit to work in the US, Mrs Dixit knew that to return to California she would have to go to the US consulate in Mumbai to get a new visa stamped on her passport, a requirement for some visa holders when they travel abroad.

On March 16, a day before her visa appointment, the consulate shut down due to coronavirus restrictions. Eight days later, her mother passed away.

Now a new immigration order issued by President Donald Trump on Monday barring the entry of certain categories of work visa holders could leave Mrs Dixit trapped in India, far from her children, until at least the end of the year.

"I've already lost my mother and I am being kept away from my children as well," said Mrs Dixit, who is staying with relatives on the outskirts of Mumbai.

"At this point, my brain is just a fog."

Mrs Dixit is one of nearly 1,000 people in India trapped in similar situations who have joined a private group on the messaging app Telegram.

Many like her have lived and worked in the United States legally for years but were in India when Mr Trump made his announcement on Monday. They are confused and worried about their options for return, the administrators of the group said.

Mr Trump's proclamation suspends the entry of people arriving on a range of work visas including the H-1B for skilled workers, often those in the tech industry, professionals like Mrs Dixit and her husband.

The ban, which came into force on Wednesday, also applies to L visas used for international transfers of high-level employees, as well as visas for seasonal workers, those on intern and trainee programmes, and accompanying family members.

Some are exempt from the ban, such as those working in the food supply industry and medical workers involved in combating the coronavirus.

But, while the proclamation exempts the spouses and children of US citizens, it is silent on the parents of children who are US citizens.

Mrs Dixit's husband, Kaustubh Talathi, has been trying to juggle his full-time job with taking care of their two daughters, who are six and three years old.

Mrs Dixit calls her children, sometimes for hours a day, trying to keep them occupied by reading books and singing songs so her husband can work.

But she fears the separation will cause long-term psychological damage, especially for her younger daughter, who has grown frustrated with the phone calls.

Her older daughter wrote above a family portrait on the fridge,"living sadly ever after".

The White House said the visa measure is necessary to make jobs available for Americans when millions are out of work due to the pandemic.

But six Indians, including Mrs Dixit, in the Telegram group said they have held on to their US-based jobs during the pandemic.

Mr Vinod Albuquerque, a 41-year-old business consultant, has continued working remotely for his company in Atlanta since his emergency trip to Mangaluru in Karnataka when his father had a stroke in February.

He left his pregnant wife, due in September, and six-year-old son in the US.

He, too, was not able to get a visa appointment before the consulate shuttered and is now stranded.

"It feels so unfair," Mr Albuquerque said.

"We understand maybe something like this for new H-1Bs that have never been to the US, but people like us are collateral damage.

"I still contribute to the economy, I am still being taxed in the US."

Reuters

"I've already lost my mother and I am being kept away from my children as well. At this point, my brain is just a fog."

- Mrs Poorva Dixit and her husband, Kaustubh Talathi, with their children in San Francisco

X

அதற்குள்ளாகவா? இந்தச் செய்திகளையும் படிக்கலாமே!

அதற்குள்ளாகவா?
இந்தச் செய்திகளையும் படிக்கலாமே!