PUNE: Ruchika Seth, a 30-year-old PhD scholar from the Inter-university Centre for Astronomy and Astrophysics (IUCAA), fell to her death while trekking at Jivdhan Fort near Naneghat in Junnar taluka, about 120km from the city, on Wednesday afternoon.
Seth had recently returned to her native place in New Delhi after completing PhD from IUCAA and also secured a post-doctoral fellowship at University of Tartu, Estonia.
On July 31, Seth and her brother came to Mumbai by flight and she went to meet a former IUCAA PhD scholar friend now settled in Thane. The two set out for trek accompanied by two more friends, the police said.
They reached the fort early on Wednesday and climbed all the way up on foot.
Police inspector Vikas Jadhav told TOI that the accident occurred when they were coming down a green algae-ridden step where Seth slipped and fell into a deep valley. Her friends raised an alarm and got some local villagers to remove her. She was taken to the Junnar rural hospital where the medical authorities declared her dead, the police said.
“Her parents have been informed about the tragedy and reached Pune on Wednesday evening,” said IUCAA director Somak Raychaudhury. “She was one of IUCCA’s favourite students and it is unfortunate to lose her in this manner,” said Raychaudhury.
The Junnar police have registered a case of accidental death.
