Bajura, September 3

The whereabouts of journalist Tej Bahadur Khadka, who went missing while returning home from a fair at the religious site of Budhinanda on August 26, was yet to be known in Bajura.

A joint team comprising personnel from the Nepali Army and Nepal Police deployed to Budhinanda area to search for the missing journalist has not succeeded till date, said Bajura CDO Chetraj Baral.

CDO Baral said that thick fog and incessant rainfall had made the search operation very difficult.

Despite the government’s direction to the security agency to use helicopter to search for the missing journo, the chopper has failed to reach Budhinanda area owing to adverse weather. The sacred site of Budhinanda is located at a height of 4,500 metres.

According to police, journalist Khadka went missing from Bar Magne Danda area located at a height of 4,100 metres.

Khadka is a programme presenter at Kolti-based Radio Budhinanda.

Federation of Nepali Journalists has formed a mission team led by its General Secretary Ramesh Bista to search for the missing journalist. The mission team has Press Union Chair Badri Sigdel, FNJ central members Min Bam, Shyam Bhatta and Uttar Bista, FNJ Province 7 Chair Arjun Shah and Bajura chapter of FNJ Chair Prakash Singh as members.

Similarly, Press Union has formed a separate mission team led by Sigdel to search for the missing journalist.