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Over 600 lost their way in Lonavla forest since 2005
In most cases, there is no formal missing complaint lodged at police station as the tourists have been located within few hours
The incident of 24-year-old Delhi-based engineer Irfan Shah gone missing at Duke Nose point (Nagphani) at Lonavla since Friday has once again underlined the importance of caution advised by local trekking groups for solo trips.
The green belt has seen over 600 tourists losing their way since 2005.
In most cases, there is no formal missing complaint lodged at police station as the tourists have been located within few hours
Solo trips without proper knowledge of topography and dense greenery are some of the reasons cited by experts for missing cases.
Data collected from the Pune rural police and social groups like Shivdurg Pratisthan show that they have jointly rescued around 600 missing trekkers from the treacherous terrain of Lonavla forests.
In 2013, a weekend trekking adventure to Rajmachi fort near Lonavla turned into a nightmare for six engineering students and a senior citizen when they could not find their way out of the forest.
“Usually, the trekkers and solo visitors go missing as they are not familiar with the terrain. Also, it is for the first time that somebody has gone missing from Duke Point. Tourists must have a local guide and knowledge about the place they are trekking,” said police inspector Sitaram Dubal said.
Anand Gawade, president, Shivdurg Pratisthan, said, “We have also found 100 bodies of missing persons over the years. These cases include death by suicide, murder and accidents like falling from cliffs.”
On March 30, the body of a young woman was found in a valley at Kunegaon area between Lonavla and Rajmachi. The Lonavla city police summoned Shivdurg Pratisthan rescue squad in finding the missing girl. In March, the squad had played a key role in saving a group of 11 IT professionals who were stung by bees. Some of them had fallen unconscious after being stung by the bees.
Abhinav Deshmukh, superintendent of police, Pune rural, said, “The trekker who went missing from Duke Point told his brother that he had run out of water and also shared the location. We are taking the help of social groups like Shivdurg Pratisthan to find the missing trekker.”
Hiking gone wrong
April 2011
Veerendra alias Vicki Pratap Rathod, a 28-year-old employee of a private telecom company in Mumbai, fell to his death in a 250-foot deep gorge at Tiger Point in Lonavla. His body was retrieved by Shivdurg Pratisthan, the local trekking social group.
October 2016
25-year-old Agnel Cyril Peris, from Kalina in Mumbai, fell to his death while taking a selfie with his friends at Lion’s Point Valley near Lonavla.
September 2018
Rohan Mahajan, a 30-year-old section engineer with the Central Railway, died after he fell off a cliff at Duke’s Nose in Khandala. Mahajan, a resident of Matunga, had gone to Duke’s Nose with a group of friends for a picnic.
September 2019
The body of a 24-year-old woman software engineer Aliza Rana reported missing from Hinjewadi since September 11 was found in the 300ft valley at Lion’s Point near Lonavla. Shivdurg Pratisthan volunteers retrieved the body. She hailed from Hyderabad and was working with Infosys at the Rajiv Gandhi Infotech Park in Hinjewadi.
