Several Hyderabad-linked pilgrims have returned safely, but families are still searching for others after the devastating Nepal-Tibet flash floods. Here is what is confirmed, what has changed and who remains unaccounted for.
Last Updated: September 2, 2026 | 12:30 AM IST
EDITOR’S NOTE
Earlier reports cited by Fridaywall indicated that Suhasini Reddy Kandimalla had contacted her family and was safe. Her family has subsequently said those reports were incorrect and that she remains missing. This article has been updated accordingly.
Hyderabad: Nearly a week after catastrophic flash floods devastated areas along the Nepal-Tibet border, families in Hyderabad and Telangana continue to wait for information about relatives who were travelling to or returning from the Kailash Mansarovar region.
The situation has changed considerably since the first reports emerged.
Some Hyderabad-linked pilgrims initially feared missing or stranded have since been confirmed safe and returned home. Others remain uncontactable. And the large numbers that circulated during the first hours of the disaster — including claims that 140 to 156 people from Hyderabad were missing — have not been established as the number of Hyderabad residents actually missing.
Instead, a clearer picture is emerging person by person.
Government tracing lists have also included both Telangana residents and Telangana-origin foreign nationals, which explains some of the conflicting figures appearing in reports.
Here is what we know now.
WHO FROM HYDERABAD IS STILL MISSING?
Suhasini Reddy Kandimalla
Suhasini Reddy Kandimalla, 44, who has Hyderabad links and is a New Zealand citizen living in Australia, remains missing.
This is an important correction to reports published earlier in India that Suhasini had contacted her family and was receiving treatment at a hospital.
Her brother Rajeev Reddy and his wife Lauren have publicly rejected those reports and appealed for the search to continue.
Radio New Zealand reported on September 1 that Suhasini was among five New Zealand citizens still missing following the disaster.
Her family has travelled to Nepal and is working with Nepal Police and New Zealand government representatives in efforts to trace her.
Suhasini had recently visited Hyderabad for a housewarming ceremony before travelling onwards for the Kailash Mansarovar pilgrimage.
The Avvari Family: Sridhar, Deepti and Abhinav
A Hyderabad family of three also remains missing.
Sridhar Avvari, his wife Deepti Avvari and their 14-year-old son Abhinav Avvari left their Kukatpally home on August 13 to undertake the Kailash Mansarovar Yatra with an Isha-linked group.
According to a Times of India report published late on September 1, their relatives expected to hear from Sridhar and Deepti on August 26 because the family was scheduled to return the following day.
No message came.
When relatives subsequently attempted to contact them, their phones were unreachable.
The family has since been seeking information through the tour organisers and government authorities.
Sridhar, Deepti and Abhinav were among the five Hyderabad residents identified in an earlier Telangana tracing exercise.
Dhanpal Reddy
Rallagudem Dhanpal Reddy of Manikonda also remains uncontactable.
According to reports citing his family, Dhanpal had travelled for the Kailash Mansarovar pilgrimage with a larger group.
He last contacted his family on the morning of August 26 and reportedly said the group had reached the immigration area and would proceed after completing formalities.
His phone subsequently became unreachable.
Earlier reporting placed his last known location around the Rasuwagadhi border area shortly before the disaster struck.
His family has approached authorities seeking assistance in tracing him.
There is currently no official confirmation that Dhanpal has died. His status should therefore continue to be treated as missing or uncontactable.
OTHER TELANGANA-LINKED TRAVELLERS
The tracing exercise extends beyond people currently living in Hyderabad or Telangana.
Families of Telangana-origin NRIs and foreign citizens have also approached authorities for assistance, which is one reason different numbers have appeared in reports.
Among the Telangana-linked people identified in recent reporting are overseas citizens with roots in Hyderabad and Telangana.
The New Indian Express reported that families of eight Indian-origin US citizens, some with Telangana roots, had sought assistance from the Ministry of External Affairs.
Earlier reports also identified Hyderabad-linked overseas citizens including Sridevi Vejella and Geetha Vachan Adinarayana Reddy among people whose families were awaiting information.
Until authorities publish a reconciled list with current individual statuses, these broader Telangana-linked figures should be treated cautiously.
WHY ARE WE SEEING 21, 23, 26 AND 27?
This has been one of the most confusing aspects of the Hyderabad and Telangana coverage.
Different reports over the past several days have referred to 21, 23, 26 and 27 people.
They are not necessarily describing exactly the same category.
Some government figures have referred specifically to Telangana residents.
Other tracing exercises have included people with Telangana roots who are citizens or residents of other countries.
Telangana Bhavan has also continued receiving new requests from families, meaning people can be added to the tracing exercise even as others are located.
One Telangana government update said 21 state residents remained missing after Alli Ilesha was confirmed safe.
Separate reports based on the wider tracing exercise have put the number of Telangana-linked people, including NRIs, higher.
For this reason, Fridaywall is not presenting any one of these figures as a definitive number of people from Telangana who are missing.
A tracing list is also not the same thing as a confirmed casualty list.
WHO HAS BEEN FOUND SAFE?
There has also been significant good news for Hyderabad families.
Former DRDO Chairman Dr G. Satheesh Reddy and Hyderabad Pilgrims
The Hyderabad-linked Kailash Mansarovar pilgrimage group that included former DRDO Chairman Dr G. Satheesh Reddy returned safely to Hyderabad on August 30.
The pilgrims had crossed the area subsequently devastated by the floods before the disaster struck.
They were later stranded because their planned return corridor through the Gyirong/Kerung area was disrupted.
Alternative arrangements were made for their return, and the group eventually reached Hyderabad safely.
Their return is particularly significant because this was one of the large Hyderabad-linked groups whose status caused concern during the initial communications blackout.
Alli Ilesha
Hyderabad businessman Alli Ilesha was also initially reported uncontactable.
He subsequently established contact with his family and was confirmed safe.
His case demonstrates why the distinction between “uncontactable” and “missing” has been so important throughout this disaster.
WHAT’S NOT TRUE: 140 TO 156 HYDERABADIS ARE CONFIRMED MISSING
One of the earliest and most alarming narratives surrounding the disaster was that around 140 to 156 people from Hyderabad were missing.
There is still no evidence establishing that 140 to 156 Hyderabad residents are missing.
The figures appear to have been associated with the size of pilgrimage groups travelling through or connected with Hyderabad at a time when communication with the disaster zone had broken down.
Two distinctions are crucial.
Travelling from or through Hyderabad does not necessarily make someone a Hyderabad resident.
And being temporarily unreachable during a major communications blackout does not mean that person has been officially declared missing.
Several people initially described as unreachable were subsequently located safely.
WHAT ABOUT THE 77-MEMBER ISHA GROUP?
Another source of confusion has been the 77-member Isha Sacred Walks group.
Communication with the group was lost around the Gyirong immigration area after the floods.
But describing the group as “77 Hyderabadis missing” was incorrect.
Isha Foundation said the group included people of Indian origin as well as participants from several countries.
Some people with Hyderabad and Telangana links were part of the wider group, but the entire group was not made up of Hyderabad residents.
WHERE DO RESCUE OPERATIONS STAND?
Search, rescue and identification operations continue across the affected Nepal-Tibet region.
According to the Ministry of External Affairs update reported on September 1, 163 Indian nationals had been rescued in Nepal.
The MEA also said 151 people had left China during the day.
Indian rescue personnel have been working alongside local authorities in extremely difficult terrain, while Indian forensic specialists are assisting with identification.
Nepalese authorities continue searching for missing Nepali and foreign nationals.
The disaster has destroyed or damaged roads, bridges, buildings and communications infrastructure, making both rescue and identification difficult.
The scale of the catastrophe is also becoming clearer as authorities reach previously inaccessible locations.
WHAT DOES DNA TESTING MEAN FOR FAMILIES?
Families of missing travellers have also begun receiving information about identification procedures, including DNA testing.
This requires careful interpretation.
The existence of a DNA identification process does not mean a particular missing traveller has been confirmed dead.
Where visual identification is possible, authorities may not require DNA testing.
Where remains cannot otherwise be identified, forensic teams can use fingerprints, dental information and DNA matching.
Telangana authorities have advised families not to travel independently or arrange DNA testing without first coordinating with Telangana Bhavan or the Indian Embassy.
First-degree relatives may be able to provide samples in India if DNA comparison becomes necessary.
WHAT WE KNOW RIGHT NOW
Suhasini Reddy Kandimalla remains missing. Her family has rejected earlier reports that she had been found safe.
Sridhar Avvari, Deepti Avvari and their 14-year-old son Abhinav Avvari remain missing.
Dhanpal Reddy of Manikonda remains uncontactable.
Other Telangana-origin NRIs and overseas citizens remain part of continuing tracing efforts.
The Hyderabad pilgrimage group including former DRDO Chairman Dr G. Satheesh Reddy has returned home safely.
Alli Ilesha, who was initially uncontactable, has been confirmed safe.
There is no evidence establishing that the early figure of 140 to 156 represented confirmed missing residents of Hyderabad.
There is also no confirmed Telangana casualty figure that should be inferred merely from the number of people being traced.
WHAT FAMILIES SHOULD DO
Families still unable to contact relatives should continue providing authorities with the traveller’s full name, passport details, nationality, mobile number, tour operator, itinerary and last known location.
Photographs and identifying information may also become important as rescue and identification operations continue.
Families should rely on information from the Ministry of External Affairs, Indian Embassy, Telangana government and relevant foreign diplomatic authorities rather than unverified lists and rescue claims circulating on social media.
A DEVELOPING STORY
The first days following the Nepal flash floods produced a flood of numbers alongside the physical devastation.
People were described interchangeably as stranded, unreachable and missing. Groups travelling through Hyderabad were sometimes described as groups of Hyderabad residents. Telangana residents and Telangana-origin foreign nationals appeared together in some counts.
Nearly a week later, those broad numbers are giving way to something much more important: individual names and individual families.
Some have received the call they were desperately waiting for.
Others are still waiting.
For Hyderabad, the story is no longer whether 140 or 156 people are missing. It is about establishing, person by person, who is safe, who remains uncontactable and where search teams should continue looking.
Fridaywall will continue updating this report as families and authorities confirm individual cases.
This is a developing report. Information will be corrected and updated as verified information becomes available.
