Shillong, June 2: With no trace of the missing tourist couple from Madhya Pradesh despite all out efforts from the government and local communities of Sohra, their family has urged chief minister Conrad K Sangma to seek deployment of Delhi Police and central paramilitary forces in the search operations.
It’s been 10 days since the newly-wed couple – Raja Raghuwanshi (30) and Sonam Raghuwanshi (27) – went missing after they had arrived in Sohra, one of the most favourite tourist destinations in North East, on a honeymoon trip.
Discontented with the rescue efforts that have failed to yield any results even after 10 days, Vinit Raghuvanshi, the elder brother of Raja, on Sunday made a fresh appeal to the chief minister to allow the central forces in the operation.
“The way the local police is carrying out the operation, they are taking a lot of time and they will take even longer to produce any result… I firmly believe that unless central forces are brought in, there will be no breakthrough,” he said.
Earlier, the chief minister reassured the family that the government was leaving no stone unturned in their efforts to locate the couple, stating that he is personally monitoring the operation.
Rescue teams comprising several dozen people comprising police personnel, State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) accompanied by local villagers have been in the lookout for the missing couple for a week now. K9 sniffer dogs and drones were also deployed to aid in the search operations in difficult areas.
However, due to heavy rains across the North Eastern Region and more so in Sohra for the entire past week has made it difficult for teams to move forward or go deeper into forests, near streams and various trekking routes.
The couple arrived at Mawlakhiat under Elaka Mynteng on May 22 on a rented scooty to visit the double decker root bridge at Nongriat. They engaged a local guide, Bha Wansai, and trekked over 3,000 steps to Nongriat where they stayed overnight at Shipara Homestay, officials said.
On the same day, the couple had first entered Manha Homestay at Saitsohpen, Sohra where they kept their luggage before proceeding further due to no vacancy and heavy rainfall.
After staying the night at Nongriat on May 22, they checked out next morning intending to return to Mawlakhiat. However, no confirmed sighting of either the couple trekking from Nongriat to Mawlakhiat or their scooty at Mawlakhiat parking lot was reported, according to officials.
On May 24 around 9:00 pm, the Sordar of Sohrarim reported an abandoned scooty, which was traced to the couple via e-challan the next day.
Sohra police had earlier issued a comprehensive safety advisory for visitors exploring the region’s rugged terrain during the pre-monsoon season. In the advisory, tourists were urged to exercise extreme caution near cliffs, water bodies, and jungles, warning of sudden river surges, strong undercurrents, hidden rocks and unstable edges that pose serious risks especially to children.
