Two girls from Malappuram, Kerala, who had gone missing, were found in Lonavala, Maharashtra, after an extensive search operation lasting over 35 hours. 

They were travelling on the Chennai-Egmore Express when Railway police officials identified them using photographs provided by Kerala Police.

The police confirmed that the girls are safe and have been taken to the Pune RPF office. According to Tanur DySP, who spoke to them over the phone, the girls were relieved to have been found but were also anxious about how their families would react upon their return home.

The students had left home on Wednesday, claiming they were going to their school, Devadhar Government Higher Secondary School, to write an exam. However, they did not arrive at the school. Concerned parents and the school principal lodged a complaint with the police.

Investigations revealed that the girls had befriended a man from Edavanna through Instagram. They reportedly travelled with him from Kozhikode to Panvel on Wednesday afternoon. The man took them to a beauty parlour run by a Malayali woman in Panvel.

Maharashtra Police and Malayali community members were alerted about the girls' presence at the parlour. However, by the time they arrived, the girls had already left. The parlour owner told that the girls had reached the parlour at around 2 pm on Thursday. They were wearing masks, and one of them was captured on video getting a haircut.

Why did the girls go to Mumbai?
The girls told the parlour owner that they had come to Mumbai for a friend's wedding. They claimed that their friend was supposed to pick them up, but they left before he arrived.

How was their absence noticed?
The school authorities became aware of their absence when they called their homes after noticing that one of the girls had missed an exam scheduled for Wednesday. The school principal stated that both girls had taken an exam on March 3.