Missing BHMS Student from Nanded Rescued in Mumbai After 47 Days, Family Reunited

Mumbai Police’s anti-begging drive led to the rescue of a 25-year-old medical student from Nanded , who had been missing for 47 days and was found in a distressed mental state while begging in the city’s western suburbs, officials said on Sunday.

The student, Abhay Suresh Belkoni , a third-year BHMS (Bachelor of Homoeopathic Medicine and Surgery) student, went missing on April 4 while travelling by train from Nanded towards Jalgaon, where he was headed for college-related work.

According to police, Abhay’s disappearance appears to have begun during the journey itself. He reportedly lost his bag, mobile phone, and identity documents while on the train , leaving him stranded without money or any means of communication. With no way to contact family or trace his route, he is believed to have got separated from his intended travel plan and disoriented , eventually ending up in Mumbai.

Stranded and unable to seek help, he survived on the streets of Mumbai and was later found begging for food on SV Road in Malad during a routine anti-begging operation conducted by the Malad police on Thursday.

“The youth appeared physically weak and was unable to respond clearly due to his mental condition, but he was able to state his name and hometown,” an official from Malad police station said.

Police verified his identity with the Tamsa police station in Nanded , where a missing person complaint had been lodged. Investigations confirmed that Abhay had briefly contacted his family on April 6 using a railway vendor’s phone, but the call was abruptly disconnected before he could explain his situation. The vendor later informed the family that the student had moved away.

After that brief contact, all communication was lost, prompting his family to file a formal missing complaint on May 16 after days of unsuccessful searches and uncertainty. Following confirmation of his identity, Mumbai Police contacted his father, and Abhay was safely reunited with his family on the same day .