Relatives desperate to find body of Hindu priest from Surrey missing in Nepal
Nabhi Nandan Das was leading a pilgrimage tour when the floods hit.
Last updated 1st Sep 2026
The family of a Hindu priest from Surrey who was leading a pilgrimage in Nepal when flash floods struck say they are desperate to find his body.
Nabhi Nandan Das, 64, who runs the Sanatan Mandir and Community Centre in Coulsdon, was leading a pilgrimage tour, which included 11 British nationals, for Alpine Eco Trek when the floods hit on August 26.
The tour group was on a nine-day tour to Mount Kailash in Nepal and had just crossed into China.
Mr Das’ family have not heard from him since he sent them a message the day before the disaster, which according to the Nepalese authorities has left more than 1,000 dead.
Dee Shah told the Press Association the priest, who is her mother’s cousin, has been leading pilgrimages in the area for more than 20 years.
“He went out there with 16 others and on the day it happened they had crossed the Nepal border into China,” he said.
“I think they think they’re now just going to get a body – but they want to find the body as it’s been too long not having a body."
“I think they just want to get closure.”
She said Mr Das’ wife and son are now in Nepal, but have not yet got permission to cross the border into China. They have provided DNA to assist with identification, she added.
Ms Shah has launched a GoFundMe fundraiser, which has raised more than £10,000 and will be used to help with the family’s travel costs and assist search and rescue teams.
She said money may also be used towards funerals of those missing on the tour group and any remaining will be donated to the Red Cross in Nepal.
“The reason I started the fundraiser was because of a lack of communication from the Foreign Office,” Ms Shah said.
“Every time we’ve been ringing them they just say they don’t know anything further – we’ve been ringing every few hours but being told there is no further information.”
Kumar Adhikari, manager of Alpine Eco Trek, said last week that he was in contact with his tour guides until 8.40am, when their phones went offline, at which point the group would have been inside Tibet’s immigration office.
“We were hoping that inside it was safe,” he said.
“But later the video came from China’s government which (showed) even Tibet’s side was hit by the flood.”
The manager said he was fielding “thousands” of missed calls from families in the UK.
Those missing in the tour group include Spandan Sahu, 18, his father Santosh Sahu, 46, who was chief executive of UK pharmaceutical technology company Charac, his mother Surabhi Manmath Padhy, 44, and sister Syna Kumari Sahu, 13.
Spandan had just finished his A-levels at Royal Grammar School, Guildford, and according to his LinkedIn was preparing to study philosophy, politics and economics at university.
His profile said he was a senior prefect at the private school and a member of the hockey and cricket teams.
His mother, Ms Padhy, won the categories of “Mrs Popular” and “Mrs Goodwill” in the 2018 Mrs India UK beauty pageant finals.
Woking News and Mail reported that Mumbai-born Ms Padhy was a chemistry graduate and ex-banker who pursued a business career in the UK and Ireland where she worked for Dell Computers.
The family live in the Surrey village of Cobham.
In an update on Tuesday, the Nepalese Tourist Board said 330 foreign nationals had been rescued.
Foreign Office minister Lord Wood of Anfield told peers 36 British people are currently unaccounted for, up from the previous total of 33, in an update to the House of Lords on Tuesday.
On Saturday, a rapid deployment team from the UK arrived in Nepal to provide support for Britons and their families.
The team, comprising specially trained crisis response staff, will work alongside the British embassy and local authorities.
They will help co-ordinate assistance for British nationals arriving at and departing from the airport, support those seeking information about missing relatives, liaise with local authorities and emergency responders, and reinforce existing consular operations on the ground.
Forming part of the UK’s wider response to the flooding, which includes £5 million of humanitarian support for relief and recovery efforts, the team will also work with families in the UK concerned about loved ones in the affected area.