“Holding On”: Life Continues in a Deregistered Qostanay Village

Kamenka, a village in the Mendykarin district of Kazakhstan’s Qostanay region, was officially removed from the administrative register in 2023. Today, only ten houses remain, with residents living in near-total isolation and without basic infrastructure, Orda.kz reports, citing Nasha Gazeta.

The village no longer has a medical outpost, police station, or local communications. Residents rely on Russia’s MegaFon mobile network due to the lack of domestic coverage. Roads are in poor condition, and in winter, access becomes nearly impossible.

The nearby Uy River separates the area from the Russian border.

I often remember how I used to work as a teacher. There was a school, a library, life was in full swing. Now everything has fallen apart. The young people have left, some have become alcoholics. My husband, I and the garden are left,
 said pensioner Tamara Kochuk.

Locals, mostly elderly, try to maintain a routine — lighting stoves, tending gardens, keeping livestock. They collect water from a neighboring village, since flooding has made the river unusable.

In winter, the farmer clears the road. Now we have to go to the neighboring village to get water. We used to get it from the river, but after the floods, it’s no longer possible,
 said Saule Sarsenbaeva.

Once home to dozens of families, Kamenka now faces inevitable disappearance. 

Original Author: Artyom Volkov