BAJURA: Two tourists who had travelled to the Badimalika religious and tourist destination in Bajura have gone missing following heavy snowfall and rainfall in the area.
According to Naresh Bahadur Shahi, information officer at the District Police Office and a police inspector, the missing tourists have been identified as 20-year-old Manish Bohara of Bedkot Municipality, Kanchanpur, and 21-year-old Sagar Karki of Krishnapur Municipality-2, Kanchanpur.
A group of five people had left the district headquarters, Martadi, for Badimalika on October 26. Three members of the group have already returned, while the other two remain missing, Shahi said.
Bohara went missing on Friday while returning from the Badimalika Bhagwati Temple, situated at an altitude of 4,020 metres. Karki has been out of contact since last night, according to Shahi.
“During a telephone conversation yesterday, Sagar informed us that his friend had gone missing while returning from Badimalika. He said he was at Triveni Patan,” Shahi said, adding that the two might have become stranded in the area due to heavy snowfall.
Shahi said Bohara went missing after snowfall began, while Karki may also have been unable to descend because of the adverse weather. Both their mobile phones appear to be switched off.
Preparations are underway to mobilize a rescue team to search for the missing tourists, he said.
Shahi added that rescue efforts have been challenging due to heavy snowfall in Badimalika and other high-altitude areas following continuous rainfall in the district since Friday. Police personnel are being prepared for deployment from Martadi to carry out the search operation.
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