Missing 14-year-old Kerala girl found dead near Manikyadhara Falls in Karnataka, cause of death not known yet | Bangalore News
2 min readBengaluruApr 10, 2026 01:40 PM IST
The body of a missing Kerala teenager has been found near Manikyadhara Falls under the Chikkamagaluru district of Karnataka on Friday, bringing an end to a nearly four-day-long search operation.
According to initial reports, the police have not yet officially confirmed the cause of death.
The teenager, Sreenanda, 14, who is from Kerala’s Palakkad, had gone missing during a family trip to Manikyadhara on Tuesday evening. She was last seen around 5.20 pm near the waterfall area and disappeared within a short window of a few minutes.
“We had come for a vacation… she went missing near Manikyadhara. We searched along with family members and informed the police, but have not been able to find her so far,” the First Information Report stated.
Search operations were intensified across Manikyadhara and the surrounding Baba Budan Giri hills. Authorities had deployed thermal drones capable of scanning depths of up to 300 feet.
Following a complaint filed by her parents, the police had registered a case under Section 137(2) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), citing suspicion of kidnapping. Authorities had been examining multiple angles, including possible abduction.
Family members described Sreenanda as a bright student who had recently completed her Class 10 Board examinations and was on holiday with relatives when the incident occurred.
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Search efforts intensified over the past days, with teams from the police, forest department, disaster response units, Rapid Action Force, and fire services combing the forested terrain around Manikyadhara Falls.
The police are expected to provide further clarity.
