New Delhi, Feb. 17 -- Indian national Mandeep Singh, who was caught while trying to enter the United States via the illegal 'donkey' route and was in the second batch of 116 illegal immigrants deported by the US to India, has recalled being forced to deal with crocodiles and snakes, trim his beard despite being a Sikh, and going without food for days.

Mandeep Singh was arrested by the US Border Patrol on January 27 while trying to sneak into America via Tijuana in Mexico.

"When I spoke to my agent, he said within one month I will be taken to America in a legal way. The agent demanded Rs.40 lakh, which I paid in two instalments. The journey began with a flight from Amritsar to Delhi last August," he told reporters outside the Amritsar ai...