Kathmandu — In a somber development amid Nepal’s unforgiving Himalayan terrain, the bodies of two Indian tourists—a father and his teenage daughter—missing since late October have been located by rescue teams in the remote Manang district.
Security officials with the Armed Police Force (APF) confirmed the grim discovery on Saturday, ending a grueling two-week hunt complicated by deep snow and harsh weather. The victims were identified as 52-year-old Jignesh Kumar Lallubhai Patel and his 17-year-old daughter, Priyansa Kumari Patel, both from India.
APF Deputy Superintendent of Police Shailendra Thapa detailed the operation, noting that a specialized mountain rescue unit, under the command of APF Deputy Superintendent Hira Bahadur GC, pinpointed the bodies approximately 100 meters above a local monastery. Buried beneath layers of accumulated snow, the remains were found after persistent efforts in one of the region’s most isolated areas.
ALSO READ : Rajasthan MBBS Student in Russia Found Dead Near Ufa Dam 19 Days After Going Missing
The pair had set out from Gyalzen Hotel in Ngisyang Rural Municipality-4 on October 20, informing staff they intended to trek to the nearby Maleripa Monastery in Ward No. 5. Contact was lost shortly thereafter, prompting the hotel to alert the APF’s Mountain Rescue Training Center in Manang. Search teams mobilized immediately, navigating treacherous conditions in the high-altitude zone.
Recovery operations at the elevated site are underway and slated for completion by Sunday, according to Thapa, as crews work to safely extract the bodies for transport.
The incident unfolds against a backdrop of extreme weather that has plagued Nepal’s trekking circuits this season. A fierce snowstorm swept through in October, stranding more than 1,500 tourists in Manang alone; security forces conducted exhaustive evacuations amid the chaos. Although the father and daughter vanished prior to the full impact of Cyclone Montha on the Himalayas, an earlier bout of heavy snowfall had already blanketed the upper elevations, turning popular paths into perilous traps.
For over a week, authorities shuttered all major trekking routes nationwide, with closures extending to numerous scenic hotspots due to impassable blockades and unrelenting adverse conditions. Nepal’s tourism sector, a vital economic lifeline, continues to grapple with the dual threats of natural volatility and seasonal extremes.
-
-
-
-
