A 15-year-old girl from Kerala who went missing during a family visit to a tourist site in Karnataka’s Chikkamagaluru district was found dead on Friday in a ravine near Manikkiadahara Falls, concluding a massive search operation that lasted several days, police said.
According to one of her relatives, the body was discovered about 150 meters from where the girl was last seen.
The student, Srinanda, from Kadambazhipuram in Palakkad district, went missing on Tuesday evening, while she was part of a group of about 40 of her relatives visiting the Chandrarona hill ranges. Her absence was noticed after she reached the summit, triggering a search operation led by the Chikkamagaluru Rural Police.
“It may be a coincidence, investigate other angles.”
Chikkamagaluru Superintendent of Police Jitendra Kumar Dayamma confirmed that the body had been found. He added, “The body was spotted and identified. It may have been an accident, but we are investigating other angles as well.” He added in a separate interaction that “autopsy and other procedures will follow.”
The body was found not far from the point where she was reported missing. Police said the area is heavily fortified and there is only one way to reach it. They are examining whether it may have fallen from a viewpoint while they continue to investigate other possibilities.
Search efforts intensified in the days following her disappearance. About 60 teams have been deployed in the region, with an additional 10 teams sent to other states. Investigators also identified 240 vehicles that were at the site on the day of her disappearance, amid initial suspicions that she might have been kidnapped. Forest department officials helped in the search, and thermal drones were used to survey the terrain.
The place where the previously found body was searched
Family members said that the place where the body was discovered had been searched earlier to no avail. A relative said the location was about 150 meters from where she was last seen, on the other side of the parking area. “When I called her parents to tell them she had not made it to the entrance, they were standing in the area where her body was now found,” he said. He added that police searched the same area earlier but did not find anything.
Her relatives told investigators that she had been walking around the site with other children shortly before she disappeared and had stopped to take photos near the waterfall.
News of the death comes even as the Karnataka Forest, Environment and Environment Department moves to tighten safety measures for trekkers. On Thursday, Minister Ishwar Khandre instructed officials to prepare comprehensive SOPs for trekking safety, citing multiple incidents of visitors going missing in forest areas.
According to an official familiar with the developments, authorities are considering using technology to improve surveillance and response.
“Among the measures under consideration is the development of a mobile application that can be temporarily installed on trekkers’ phones, enabling authorities to track their movement during the trek. This concept is based on existing systems like the forest department’s ‘e-Gastu’ app and the ‘MStripes’ platform used in tiger reserves. The minister has also directed that group insurance for trekkers be explored as part of the safety protocol,” the official said.
The proposed framework is expected to assign responsibility to designated nature guides, who will carry walkie-talkies and oversee the coordination and safety of trekking groups. The goal is to reduce delays in identifying and responding to cases where individuals become separated in remote areas, officials said.
This directive was affected not only by the Chikkamagaluru case but also by the recent incident in Kodagu, where another traveler from Kerala was found after being missing for four days.
