Desk Correspondent , Thiruvananthapuram – A 15-year-old Kerala girl named Srinanda was found dead on Friday in a valley near Manikyadhara waterfall in Karnataka’s Chikkamagaluru district, just 150 metres from where she was last seen and exactly where her parents had stood during the frantic search, relatives revealed. The Class 10 student from Kadambazhipuram in Palakkad district had gone missing on Tuesday evening while on a family outing to the Chandradrona hill ranges with around 40 relatives. She was moving with other children and had paused to take photographs near the waterfall before vanishing, triggering a massive multi-day rescue operation involving police teams, drones and forest officials that ended with the body’s recovery.

Relatives described the discovery as puzzling, noting that the spot where the body was located lay on the opposite side of the parking area and had already been searched earlier without any trace. One family member told investigators that when he called Srinanda’s parents to inform them she had not reached the entrance, both were standing precisely in the area where her body was later found. “The police had previously checked the same spot but found nothing,” the relative added, raising fresh questions about how the teenager ended up there despite the coordinated searches and the heavily barricaded terrain with limited access routes.

Srinanda’s mother had earlier cast doubts on the possibility of an accidental fall, alleging her daughter may have been abducted or harmed. Police, however, said the death “may be an accident” while confirming that other angles are also being probed. This incident has left the family devastated. Authorities continue to investigate the exact cause and circumstances surrounding the tragedy.