Dubai:
Hasta Mahananda, a single mother from Odisha, flew to the United Arab Emirates (UAE) in 2019 in search of a better employment opportunity to give a good future to her three daughters back home. She visited home once in 2022, but after her return to Dubai, the company she worked for allegedly confiscated her passport and visa, barring her from all contact at home.
She had not seen her daughters for the past four years. Desperate, she made a Facebook video narrating her ordeal, hoping someone would find a way to help her. Back home, her daughters also approached the Odisha High Court, making a formal request to trace her location. The court formally contacted the Indian Mission in the UAE and requested diplomatic intervention, according to All India Radio news.
As officials at the Indian Consulate General looked for Mahananda, her video found its way into their feeds, setting off efforts to trace her, free her, and fly her home.
The safety and welfare of Indian nationals remains our highest priority.
Heartening to see the successful repatriation and reunion of an Indian national from Odisha with her family after years apart. The Consulate continues to extend every possible assistance to Indians in… https://t.co/hRAAJTmeG4
— India in Dubai (@cgidubai) June 7, 2026
The Consulate sought to trace her details through official channels. But when those leads ran dry, “officials dug further, locating her passport number, pulling her visa records, and working backwards through her sponsor details to identify her local sponsor, who connected them to a company manager,” according to the All India Radio report.
On May 12, the company manager handed over Mahananda to the Consulate General’s office in Dubai. The consulate told The Gulf News that after the woman was located, officials reviewed her passport, cancelled her visa and labour contract. They then arranged accommodation for her within the consulate premises for about 15 days.
Her employer also settled all her outstanding dues after the mission got involved. Now, her family back in Odisha is awaiting her return any day now.
Speaking to All India Radio after her release, Mahananda said the company she was working for, was not telling her to return home.
“Seven years ago, I came to Dubai. The company where I was working wasn’t later letting me go home. I made a Facebook video. It’s been four months. The consulate finally traced me and sheltered me for about two weeks,” she said.
“I have three daughters studying back home — in grades 10, 7 and 5. I was really worried. Now my visa has been cancelled, and my Emirates ID too. The consulate gave me a ticket, and I am leaving for India. I am flying home, and I am very happy.”
