Kerala girl missing for 3 days found dead in Karnataka

Kerala girl missing for 3 days found dead in Karnataka

A 15-year-old girl from Kerala, who had gone missing during a family trip to Karnataka's Chikkamagaluru district, was found dead on Friday.

The body of Srinanda, a student from Kadambazhipuram in Palakkad district, was discovered around 150 meters away from where she was last seen near Manikyadhara falls.

She had gone missing on Tuesday evening while visiting the Chandradrona hill ranges with about 40 relatives.

Body spotted and identified: Police

Chikkamagaluru Superintendent of Police Jitendra Kumar Dayama confirmed the identification of the body.

He said, "The body has been spotted and identified. It may be an accident, but we are also probing other angles."

The area where Srinanda went missing is heavily barricaded with only one access route, leading police to investigate if she fell from a viewpoint.

Search operation involved 60 teams, thermal drones

The search operation intensified after Srinanda's disappearance, with around 60 teams deployed in the region and 10 more sent to other states.

Investigators also identified 240 vehicles present at the site on the day she went missing.

Forest department officials aided in the search, and thermal drones were used to scan the terrain.

Family members said they had searched the area where her body was found earlier without success.

Karnataka Forest department to tighten trekking safety measures

The incident has prompted the Karnataka Forest, Ecology and Environment Department to consider tightening safety measures for trekkers.

Minister Eshwar Khandre has directed officials to draft a detailed standard operating procedure for trekking safety.

Among the proposed measures is a mobile application that could be installed on trekkers' phones to track their movements during treks.

The plan also includes group insurance for trekkers to be explored as part of the safety protocol.