As Canada heads towards a record intake of students from India this year, a leading immigration lawyer and charity groups are warning of the challenges these newcomers face on arrival leading to suicides and even prostitution as they come under pressure in a foreign land.
According to data from Immigration Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC), 156,171 study permits were given to students from India, almost double the number from 2020, which was at 76,149, a substantial drop due to the Covid-19 pandemic and restrictions on travel. However, the surge this year could lead to a new record high in Indian students reaching Canadian universities and colleges, as it’s on course to eclipse the previous mark of 174,687 in 2019.
International students overall make for an industry that adds between 7 billion and 8 billion Canadian dollars each year to the Canadian higher education sector, resulting in serious recruitment activity, particularly in states like Punjab. In a recent report tracking that phenomenon and its extreme downside, the Canadian outlet Globe and Mail noted, “Bringing Indian students to Canada has become a lucrative business spanning two continents.”
The dark side of these burgeoning numbers is the mental health problems faced by these students, as families take on enormous debt to send their children abroad. The amount charged by education institutions in Canada are usually four times the approximately 7,000 Canadian dollars figure for domestic students. Adding to the burden are expenses for accommodation and food, among other items.
The outlet The Pointer reported that a single funeral home in the Greater Toronto Area (GTA) recorded five dead bodies of Indian students each month.
Ravi Jain, founder of Canadian Immigration Lawyers’ Association, said, “Consultants in India are painting a rosy picture and then there’s a tragic side”.
There’s tremendous pressure on these students to recoup the investments by their parents, and often unable to do so, they turn to drugs, leading to overdoses, suicide, and even prostitution.