Karnataka: Kerala teenager missing during trekking found dead after 4 days, questions raised on circumstances

Srinanda, a 15-year-old student from Kerala who went missing while going trekking with her family, was found dead in a valley near Manikyadhara Falls in Karnataka four days later. Police confirmed that the body was found on Friday (April 10) and said that the case is being investigated from every angle.

aSrinanda, a resident of Kadambazhipuram in Palakkad district, went missing while trekking in Chandradrona Hills on Tuesday (April 7) evening. She had gone on the trek with a group of about 40 family members. After reaching the top of the hill, his absence was discovered, after which a search operation was started.

According to police, the body was found about 150 meters from the spot where she was last seen. The surprising thing is that this is the same area where searches were conducted earlier also, but nothing was found then. Because of this, doubts have deepened regarding the circumstances of death.

Chikkamagaluru SP Jitendra Kumar Dayma said, “The body has been seen and identified. It could be an accident but we are investigating from other angles as well.” He said the post-mortem and other legal procedures will play an important role in the further investigation.

Police say that the area where the body was found is very safe and barricaded and there is only one way. In such a situation, it is also being investigated whether the girl slipped and fell down from the view-point. However, other possibilities have not been ruled out.

During the search operation, about 60 teams were deployed locally, while 10 teams were also sent to other states. Due to initial suspicion of kidnapping, 240 vehicles present at the spot that day were also examined. Forest department teams also cooperated in the operation and thermal drones were used to search in difficult terrain.

According to family members, the place where the body was found had already been investigated. A relative said the girl was last seen with other children and had stopped to take photographs near a waterfall.

After this incident, questions have been raised regarding trekking safety. Karnataka Forest, Ecology and Environment Minister Ishwar Khandre recently directed officials to prepare a comprehensive Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) for trekking, so that such incidents can be prevented in future.

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