Chandigarh: It has been 15 days and there is no trace of Akshay Sethi, the Mumbai boy who disappeared from Kasol of Parvati Valley of Kullu on May 28. The place has earned the dubious distinction of keeping its sinister secrets. The better substitute for the word ‘secret’ here is ‘disappearance’ or ‘gone missing.’ Till now, in the last 11 years, 27 trekkers – 21 foreigners and six Indians — have gone missing from Parvati Valley thus earning various undesired sobriquets such as ‘India’s Bermuda Triangle’ or ‘The Valley of Drugs & Death.’

Akshay’s distraught father Manmohan Sethi says he doesn’t want to talk about it except to reiterate the fact that “Yes, he is still missing.” Earlier, Sethi had written a Facebook post stating that his son had gone missing on May 28, and should anyone know about his whereabouts should contact him (Mr Sethi).”

The Statesman spoke to the Deputy Commissioner of Kullu Ashutosh Garg who said,

“We have carried out a search operation with two chopper sorties after we came to know of his last mobile tower location. But it has been fruitless.” Kullu SP Sakshi Karthikeyan also confirmed that Sethi’s whereabouts are not known yet. Regarding the total number of people missing from Parvati Valley, she said, “I will have to check and get back to you.” This is the second such disappearance of a Mumbai man from here in the last couple of years.

There have been others like 32-year-old Dhruv Agarwal who came to Kasol in Parvati Valley in November 2021. Enchanted by the beauty of the place, he couldn’t resist making a video call to his family. That was the last he spoke to them.

Similarly, Abhinav Mingwal from Sahibabad in UP reached Kasol in Parvati Valley on December 16, 2022. The last he was in touch with his family was on December 31. A few days later, his family registered a missing complaint. Vijay Jadeja and Kshitij Goel both from Mumbai and Priyanka Jain from Guwahati also went missing from the Parvati Valley.

Parvati Valley, particularly Kasol is a place known for rave parties many a time organised deep inside the forests by an in-group. The drugs, particularly the most sought-after Malana-cream, a variety of hashish available locally entice tourists from across the globe. The deadly mix of Malana cream and the dance parties which continue for as long as 12 hours intoxicate tourists to such an extent that they end up falling into these deep unexplored ravines of the valley. A senior official on the condition of anonymity said it is simply not possible that all the trekkers who go missing are kidnapped or looted. In fact, a majority are accident cases later found dead, and sometimes only their bodies scavenged by vultures are found. But DC Kullu Ashutosh adds that of late these rave parties have not been heard of. The administration is very strict in giving permission to play loud music. Though, local says, the rave parties take place in the back of beyond of the Parvati Valley. And that’s where the valley hides its sinister secrets.