Bengaluru: In a shocking incident, a software professional from Chennai who was trekking inside Sakaleshpur region of Western Ghats has been missing for the last 24 hours. Srikanth Balaji, 24, was trekking inside the Naxal infested area along with 15 other trekkers, all of whom had come from Chennai on Saturday morning.
Balaji is a resident of Srinagar in Chennai and worked for Infosys in Mahindra Tech Park. The Chennai Trekkers Club (CTC) had reportedly organised the expedition and no permission was sought by the police or forest department to enter the area. Trekking is banned around Sakaleshpur region ever since Naxals were tracked here in 2013.
The district administration is expected to begin rescue operations on Tuesday morning in the area which has large numbers of elephants besides Naxal movement. All the rivers and streams are flowing over their capacity and the chances of survival of the lost trekker depends on how soon the rescue party traces him in the jungles.
Superintendent of Police of Hassan District, Mr Ravi D. Chennannavar told Deccan Chronicle that a team comprising police and forest officials will begin combing operations in and around Sakaleshpur area. “Though the trekker has gone missing for the last 24 hours there has been no complaint lodged nor has anyone approached us. We have heard that the parents of the missing boy are expected to reach Hassan late on Monday night.” he said.
We suspect that as the trekking team entered the forests without any permission they might have tried to keep the police away. It’s learnt that the parents of the missing boy were informed about the incident on Saturday afternoon,” the officer said.
It was a ‘monsoon survival’ mission, the trekkers who were part of four-day monsoon expedition were informed by the organisers that it would be a difficult trek and a test of survival skills. It’s still no clear whether the trekking members were insured and whether any consent was taken from the trekkers for the loss of life or for any accidents.
The invitation to the expedition read as “this is a four day/three nights difficult exploration trek in the Western Ghats during the monsoon peak covering about 80 km. Area has wilderness, thick jungle, steep slopes, difficult terrain, no trails, approx. 3000+ mts total ascent, challenging climbs and descends, fast pace, compact group of experienced and fit trekkers.
It will be raining day and night, leeches will be sucking blood from your feet. Only those who have completed difficult CTC treks in the last six months are eligible to apply.
Monsoon trekking dangerous
The Western Ghats region around Sakaleshpura has dense to very dense forests making it difficult to trek during monsoon months. Elephants use this as a main pass between different corridors and rivers are in full spate during monsoon months. There have been numbers of adventure tragedies around the area but the accidents continue to occur.
This particular area of Western Ghats is high in reptile population and wild animals such as leopards and elephants are common. There are also reports of tiger movement in these parts of Ghats.
Previous Accidents
- 2003: Three persons died in Kempuhole while attempting kayaking. Their bodies were found washed way several kolometers during the expedition organised during the peak of monsoon
- 2004: Three people from Bengaluru, who were experienced trekkers went missing around Sakaleshpur. Their bodies were discovered a year later along the Kempuhole river
- 2006: A researcher from the Indian Institute of Science went missing in Kumara Parvata and he was found after six days
- 2013: A trekker died complaining of heart attack during a trekking in Sakaleshpur. The event was organised by Aventure Club
