A lady from Russia says that living in India/Goa is economical for her than her own country.

“It is almost double the price we have to spend for our livelihood in our country. This may be one of the reasons why the Russians are highest number of foreigners in Goa who are having businesses or also visiting the state during the tourist season”, she told Herald on the condition not to disclose the name.

The shocking revelation she made is of a new trend that has been going at present; that foreigners marry the Indians to enjoy a permanent stay in India.

“I have been told by some of the foreigners themselves that they are getting married for the purpose of registration in Goa while they have their partner and kids in their own country”, she said.

She also explained that even Indians/Goans get married as they enjoy a share in the businesses they invest in.

The statistics also reveal that in Goa the highest number of overstayers are Nigerians followed by Russians.

Few years back the Enforcement Directorate (ED) found out that Russians and UK citizens head the list of foreigners using the company route to evade the ban on their acquiring agricultural land in Goa.

ED had found that foreigners have floated companies in Goa apparently for some business purpose but mainly with a view to purchasing properties that is in contravention of the provisions of the Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA).

State Government had referred over 400 such cases while around 300 cases were found in some violations by ED few years ago.