Ballari: A 50-year-old woman, who lost contact with her family for about 25 years, was found in Mandi, Himachal Pradesh.
Officials confirmed that Sakama hails from Dhananaya Kanakal village in Ballari taluk and will be reunited with her family soon.
The incident began 25 years ago when Sakama took her children to attend the wedding of a relative in Hosapet. She stumbles onto a train bound for Chandigarh and spends a rough time traveling across the northern states of India.
She eventually found herself at a refugee facility in Mandi district of Himachal Pradesh.
During the course of the investigation, her children reported that their mother had disappeared 25 years ago and reported the incident to the police. Police held a funeral for what they believed to be the mother’s remains after they discovered a body eight days after she went missing.
Ravinandan BM, Mandi district police officer from Karnataka, discovered Sakama’s situation. He recorded her conversation and sent it to his colleague Vijay Kumar in Bengaluru, who later shared the footage on X on Thursday.
Sakama’s testimony records indicate that her hometown was Dhananayakanahalli near Hosapet. She described her journey by train to the Mandi district and her extended stay there.
She also mentioned that she had brothers and sisters in her village.
P. Manivannan, Principal Secretary Social Welfare DepartmentAfter seeing the post, Mandi district superintendent of police Ravinandan was contacted on Thursday. The department is now responsible for arranging Sakama’s return.
Social welfare department officials, including senior warden of Harapanahalli hostel Basavaraj NG, and wardens J. Manikanth and Bharathi, have reached Mandi.
They will assist Sakama from Bengaluru refugee camp to Chandigarh airport and then to Bengaluru.
Deputy Commissioner Prashant Kumar Mishra confirmed after a meeting with social welfare department officials that Sakamma will be shifted to Ballari.
“When we were children, our mother went missing. Now she has been found and we are very happy,” said Sakama’s son Yalappa, who lives in Gujalaghati, near Ballari.
