Chikkamagaluru trek tragedy: Kerala teen found dead; family suspects foul play

Three days after a teenage girl went missing, rescue teams recovered the body of Srinanda, a 14-year-old of Kerala origin, on Friday (April 10) from a ravine nearly 2,000 feet deep.

She had reportedly disappeared in the Chandradrona mountain range in Chikkamagaluru district, prompting a massive search operation.

Meanwhile, Srinanda’s family has alleged foul play, raising suspicions about the location where her body was found. They claim that she had never ventured into the area where she was eventually discovered.

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Suspecting abduction, a family member, Sashikumar, said, “The body was found four days after she went missing, yet it does not appear to be four days old — that itself is suspicious.”

Search operation

Srinanda had gone trekking with a group of around 40 people, including her parents and relatives, when she went missing near Manikyadhara Falls at around 6 pm on Tuesday (April 7). She was last seen filming a video with her siblings while climbing.

A large-scale search operation was immediately launched under the supervision of District Superintendent of Police Jitendra Kumar Dayama. Teams from the Forest Department and Fire Brigade combed the area despite dense fog and steep terrain, working through the night with the help of thermal drone cameras.

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Authorities suspect she may have slipped and fallen while navigating a steep section of the trail. However, questions remain, including why no one heard her fall, prompting public doubts over the circumstances of her death.

Suspicion over recovery site

The family has also questioned the recovery site, stating that the area had already been searched the previous day, according to Malayalam newspaper Mathrubhumi. Srinanda’s great-uncle, Sashidharan, said the location had been combed immediately after she went missing and that the body did not appear to have been there for long.

A 100-member task force combed the foothills of the Baba Budan Hills on Friday. Fire personnel, police, and local residents had carried out extensive search efforts over the past several days, with support from a Kerala Police team. Drones and other equipment were deployed earlier, but the girl could not be located. The body was finally discovered around noon on Friday.

Also read: Lost but unafraid: Kerala trekker unfazed after spending 3 days alone in Kodagu forest

Another family member told Mathrubhumi, “Our vehicle was parked on the way back up from Manikyadhara Waterfalls. The body was found on the opposite side — a place the child had not gone to. She was last seen at the viewpoint. When she went missing, we searched the very spot where the body was later found. There is something mysterious about this death. We need an investigation.”

He also alleged that police did not conduct enquiries or question shopkeepers and local residents.

Efforts are currently underway to retrieve the body from the ravine. A post-mortem examination is expected to be conducted at the Taluk Hospital in Chikkamagaluru.

Another trek incident

In another incident recently, an IT professional from Kerala was rescued on April 5 from the Tandiamol forest in Kodagu district. She had survived alone for four days in the dense forest after going missing on April 2 while descending from the Tandiamol peak, the highest in Kodagu.