NEW DELHI, July 13. /TASS/. Nina Kutina, a 40-year-old Russian woman discovered in a remote cave in the southern Indian state of Karnataka, has lived there with her two children aged four and six for two months, the Indian Express newspaper quoted the police as saying.

"During the rainy season, they lived with minimal clothing. Kutina had stockpiled enough groceries in the cave for their survival, and despite having candles, they rarely used artificial light, instead living by natural light," it said.

Law enforcement officers found out that Kutina charged her phone during trips to the city for groceries, but rarely used it.

The state police said it was the first such case in the last 18 years.

"I have seen some youth and sadhus venturing inside the forest, but never a mother with young children. They all look healthy and sane," Gokarna police Sub Inspector Sridhar S R said.

The police found a lot of photos on Kutina’s mobile phone, in which children look happy and pose happily. The woman taught them drawing, singing, and yoga herself. When they were temporarily housed in an ashram, the children were surprised by the beds and electric light.

Kutina and her daughters were discovered on Saturday in a cave near the town of Gokarna, a landslide-prone area. While patrolling the territory, the police came across laundry hanging, and saw a woman and her children sleeping inside the cave. According to the Indian police, Kutina came to India on a business visa in 2016, which expired the following year. She was passionate about Indian spiritual practices. She and her children are expected to be sent to Bangalore, the capital of Karnataka, soon, and later deported to Russia.