Trump vows crackdown on immigrant truckers. How many Indians could be impacted?

US President Donald Trump has said his administration will take "historic action" against undocumented immigrant truck drivers and replace them with American military veterans, a proposal that could affect a large number of Indian-origin truckers if implemented.

Speaking at the Military Investment Summit in Pennsylvania, Trump on Wednesday alleged that undocumented immigrant truck drivers posed a safety risk and announced plans to ease commercial licensing for military veterans with heavy-vehicle experience.

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"My administration will soon take historic action to get illegal alien truck drivers who are just killing a lot of people," Trump said.


"They can't read signs. Many of them are on drugs or alcohol, and they shouldn't be driving these things. They came in totally illegally, and we don't want them. But they are driving all over American roadways."

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Trump said his administration would replace such drivers with former members of the US armed forces.

"We're going to replace them with proud American veterans... any American who's driven a heavy truck for our military will automatically be eligible for a commercial driver's license."

The US President did not provide details on how the proposal would be implemented or when it would take effect.

Trump's remarks come amid an ongoing federal crackdown on immigrant truck drivers. In March, around 200,000 immigrant drivers who had authorisation to live and work in the United States lost their licences as part of the enforcement drive, The New York Times reported.

The trucking industry has increasingly relied on immigrant workers in recent years because of persistent driver shortages and relatively attractive wages.

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How many Indians could be affected?

While the Trump administration has not released any estimate of how many Indian drivers could be impacted, the proposal has sparked concern because of the sizeable Indian presence in the US trucking industry.

Several media reports, citing the North American Punjabi Trucking Association (NAPTA), have said there are between 130,000 and 150,000 truck drivers from Punjab and Haryana in the US.

ET Online could not independently verify the estimated number.

It remains unclear how many of these drivers are US citizens, permanent residents, legal immigrants or undocumented workers, meaning the number that could ultimately be affected by any new policy cannot yet be determined.

Trump's comments follow a broader immigration enforcement push by his administration targeting undocumented workers across multiple sectors. No executive order or formal policy detailing the proposed replacement of immigrant truck drivers with military veterans has yet been announced.