BARIPADA: Udala police in Mayurbhanj district on Friday found two Class VI girls who had reportedly gone missing from their school hostel a day back.

The schoolgirls, students of Kasturba Gandhi Balika Vidyalaya (KGBV) at Radho, were found roaming at Udala Mahotsav fairgrounds, said police.

The two girls were reported to be missing on Thursday.

School staff said the duo was last seen on the hostel premises. When they did not turn up for dinner and were found missing from the hostel, the school authorities immediately contacted their families.

On being informed, parents of the girls reached the hostel in the night and searched nearby places along with the school staff. However, the girls could not be traced.

Subsequently, school headmistress Malati Behera filed a report in Udala police station.

Acting on the complaint, police registered a case and started investigation. During search, police traced the girls at the Mahotsav venue at around 3 pm on Friday.

They were brought to the police station and the school headmistress was informed.

The two girls reportedly told police that they went to Udala to enjoy the fair. After nightfall, they did not dare to return to the hostel and took shelter at a place near the fairground.

In the morning, they again went to the fair and ate food at a stall there.

While parents of the two girls blamed the headmistress for the incident and accused her of negligence, a team from the block education office rushed to the school to take stock of the situation.

Block education officer (BEO) of Udala Deepak Kumar Mishra said an official investigation has been carried out after the students were traced. “Once the probe report comes, necessary action will be taken against those found responsible for the incident,” Mishra added.