Russian woman, 2 kids rescued from Gokarna cave

A spiritually inclined Russian woman and her two young children were rescued from a remote cave in the serene yet treacherous Ramatirtha hills of Kumta taluk in Uttara Kannada district, a police officer said on Saturday.

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Police identified the woman as 40-year-old Nina Kutina alias Mohi. She had journeyed from Russia to India on a business visa and found her way to the coastal town of Gokarna via Goa, and was drawn deeply by Hinduism and Indian spiritual traditions.

Her children, Preya (6) and Ama (4), had accompanied her into the forest, where they had been living in complete seclusion for nearly two weeks.

There, Mohi kept a Rudra idol and spent her days in ‘puja’ and meditation, seeking spiritual peace amidst nature.

It was during a routine patrol on Friday, following a recent landslide that Circle Police Inspector Sridhar and his team spotted clothes hanging outside the cave.

Curious and cautious, the officers made their way through the thick shrubs of Ramatirtha Hill and found Mohi and her two children in the cave.

Uttara Kannada Superintendent of Police M Narayana, speaking to PTI on Saturday, said, “Our patrolling team spotted clothes being hung for drying outside the cave. When they went there, they spotted Mohi along with her children.” He added, “It was quite surprising how she and her children survived in the woods and what they ate. Thankfully, nothing untoward happened to her or the children during their time in the forest.”

According to him, the woman may have reached the cave from Goa. It was also found that her visa had expired in 2017. How long she has been living in India remains unclear, he added.

Narayana further said, “We have arranged her stay in an ashram, run by a Sadhvi. We have initiated the process to take her to Bengaluru from Gokarna and begin the deportation process.”

With the help of a local NGO, the Russian Embassy was contacted and formalities were set in motion to deport her.