A Russian woman and her two young children were discovered living in a secluded and risky cave on top of the Ramatirtha Hill in Gokarna, Karnataka. The three were found by the police in a makeshift hut deep inside the woods while on patrol.
The accident was discovered at 5:00 PM on July 9, when Inspector Sridhar SR and his crew from Gokarna Police Station were patrolling in the Ramatirtha Hill region to provide security for tourists. During the search of the forest area, they saw the movement of people near a cave in a risky, landslide area. After inquiry, they found Nina Kutina (40 years), a Russian woman, staying inside the cave with her two daughters Prema (6 years, 7 months) and Ama (4 years).
When questioned, Nina stated that she had come from Goa to Gokarna in search of spiritual isolation. She told that she had decided to stay in the cave within the forest so that she could perform meditation and prayer without any distractions from city life. Spiritual was her motive, but the authorities were gravely concerned regarding the security of the children in this setting.
Also read: Centre vs State in K’taka over Sharavathi bridge launch
Ramatirtha Hill where the cave is located had witnessed a significant landslide in July 2024 and has dangerous wild animals, such as venomous snakes, inhabiting it, making the location risky.
After counselling the woman and telling her about the risks, the police squad managed to rescue the family and escort them down the hill. According to the request of the woman, she was resettled in an ashram headed by Swami Yogaratna Saraswati, an 80-year-old nun, in Bankikodla village of Kumta taluk.
As the officials continued to investigate, it became clear that Nina did not want to divulge information about her passport and visa status. On further interrogation and soft persuasion by police, welfare officials, and the ashram head, she finally revealed that her documents might have been misplaced somewhere in the forest cave.
A combined search drive by the Gokarna Police and Forest Department authorities resulted in the recovery of her visa papers and passport. Investigation found that Nina had initially entered India on a Business Visa with an expiry date of April 17, 2017. She was issued an Exit Permit by the FRRO Panaji, Goa on April 19, 2018, and she had then left India and returned to re-enter India on September 8, 2018, thus overstaying her allowed time.
Taking this violation of visa into account, the woman and her daughters were shifted to the Department of Women and Child Development-run Women's Reception Centre in Karwar and are presently being detained in protective custody.
The Uttara Kannada Superintendent of Police initiated official communication with the Foreigners Regional Registration Office (FRRO), Bengaluru, to allow the deportation of the woman and her two children back to Russia. The family would be produced before FRRO authorities in Bengaluru shortly.
Follow us
