Body of missing medical intern found from Ravi

The search teams have recovered the body of medical intern of Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru Government Medical Collge, Chamba, who was missing for nine days after being swept away in the Ravi.

The deceased has been identified as Dr Ishika Sharma (23), a resident of Hatkoti village in Tehsil Jubbal of Shimla district. Ishika, who was pursuing her internship at Chamba Medical College, went missing on September 21 the car she was travelling in with three of her friends skidded off the road and plunged into the Ravi near Parel in the outskirts of Chamba town, triggering an intensive search by the local administration, police and National Disaster Response Force (NDRF). One of the interns had died on the spot while two were seriously injured in the accident.

After more than a week of continuous efforts, her body was finally spotted near Dug village, on the banks of the Ravi, by some locals who informed the search teams, said Chamba Additional Superintendent of Police Hitesh Lakhanpal.

The body was retrieved on Monday and was handed over to the family today after conducting postmortem and completing other medico-legal formalities.

The police had earlier made extensive search efforts to locate her using drones and other methods. The search operation was hampered by the river’s strong currents, making recovery efforts extremely challenging.