Dharwad man who was part of Isha Foundation group missing after Nepal flash floods; Haveri pilgrims safe in Pokhara

On Wednesday just before 3:30 a.m., 39-year-old Shivaprasad Rakesh Nayaka, an Australian resident originally from Dharwad, last spoke to his family before vanishing following flash floods in Nepal. Nayaka was part of an Isha Foundation pilgrimage group heading to Manasarovar. According to his brother-in-law, Praveen, Nayaka arrived in Delhi on August 12 and was part of the "S3 batch".

The group's original itinerary called for them to reach Kathmandu early Wednesday morning. However, their plans were upended by the floods. Praveen explained that Nayaka was at an immigration centre when the floods struck. His wife and two children reside in Australia, while his parents and other relatives in Dharwad have been trying to secure government help to locate him.

An Isha Foundation representative confirmed to The Hindu that the team is keeping in contact with Nayaka's family. Meanwhile, another traveler named Murali S., who was part of a separate pilgrimage group, described the dire circumstances in Kathmandu after the floods. "We had just returned from the Manasarovar pilgrimage and were staying in Kathmandu when the incident occurred.

All our lodging, including hotels and the immigration office, were washed away. Fortunately, we managed to survive," Murali S. stated. Separately, 12 individuals from six families hailing from Rattihalli in Haveri district, who were stranded in Pokhara due to the floods, have released a video confirming their safety. In the video, two group members said they were traveling from Pokhara to Kathmandu when they were alerted to the flash floods.

They turned around and returned to Pokhara. Due to severely disrupted highway access, the group decided to stay in Pokhara for two days before attempting to proceed to Kathmandu once more.