Ludhiana, Feb. 17 -- The 65 illegal immigrants from Punjab, who have been deported from the United States so far, spent a whopping Rs.27.5 crore in the hope of realising their American dream, as per a document compiled by state government officials.

The document - HT has seen a copy of it - further revealed that Gurdaspur had the highest number of deportees at 11 followed by Kapurthala with 10 and Hoshiarpur with nine.

Two couples from Mohali paid Rs.85 lakh each to private agents in Haryana.

Most others paid approximately Rs.50 lakh to private agents by selling their land or mortgaging their homes.

The agents, operating from different parts of Punjab, Haryana, and even Dubai, had assured them of a smooth journey to the US. However, t...