Body of Indian UC Berkeley Student Saketh Sreenivasaiah Found in Lake Anza After Week-Long Search
The Berkeley community learned the outcome of a deeply troubling disappearance in February 2026, when the body of Saketh Sreenivasaiah — a 22-year-old Indian postgraduate student from Karnataka enrolled in chemical engineering at UC Berkeley — was recovered from Lake Anza after a search that drew the attention of the Indian Consulate, his family and the broader South Asian student community across the Bay Area.
Body of Saketh Sreenivasaiah Recovered From Lake Anza
The American Bazaar reported that the body of Saketh Sreenivasaiah, an Indian student who had been missing from UC Berkeley's campus for several days, was recovered from Lake Anza. Sreenivasaiah was a postgraduate student in chemical engineering at the University of California, Berkeley, and had been reported missing after he was last seen near campus on the evening of February 10, 2026. Lake Anza is a natural swimming area within Tilden Regional Park in the East Bay hills above Berkeley, a location frequented by students and hikers. The recovery of his body brought to a close a search that had mobilised Berkeley Police, the Indian community in the Bay Area and South Asian diaspora media across the United States and India. The American Bazaar, which covers the Indian-American community across the United States, reported the recovery as a significant and sorrowful development for the Indian student community at UC Berkeley and beyond. Sreenivasaiah, who hailed from Karnataka in southern India, had been pursuing advanced studies at one of America's most prestigious universities. The case drew widespread attention among the South Asian diaspora and prompted discussions about student welfare, mental health resources and the particular pressures faced by international students far from home. His passing is mourned by the South Asian community across the Bay Area. [2]
Indian Consulate in San Francisco Steps In as Search Escalates
Gulf News reported that the Consulate General of India in San Francisco issued a statement expressing deep concern over the disappearance of Saketh Sreenivasaiah, describing him as a 22-year-old Indian postgraduate student at UC Berkeley hailing from Karnataka. The Consulate confirmed it was in direct contact with Sreenivasaiah's family and with concerned authorities in the United States to locate him. Consulate officials confirmed they were closely monitoring the ongoing search operations being conducted by local law enforcement in the East Bay area, with the search centred near Lake Anza in the hills above Berkeley. The intervention of the Consulate General underscored the seriousness with which Indian diplomatic missions take the welfare of Indian students studying abroad, particularly when they go missing in circumstances that are not immediately clear. The Gulf News report noted that search operations were under way in the East Bay area, involving police and volunteers. This level of consular attention reflects the large and significant presence of Indian students and professionals in the Bay Area, where the Indian diaspora makes up a substantial portion of the technology, academic and research workforce. The story resonated widely across the Indian community in the United States and in India, with many South Asian families in the Bay Area following the case closely with concern and sadness. [3]
Who Was Saketh Sreenivasaiah — The UC Berkeley Student From Karnataka
WION, the Indian international news channel, published a detailed report on Saketh Sreenivasaiah, identifying him as a 22-year-old student of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering at the University of California, Berkeley, who had disappeared in California. According to WION's report, Sreenivasaiah was last seen on February 10, approximately one kilometre from UC Berkeley's campus, as confirmed by the Berkeley Police Department. The search for him had entered its fifth day by the time of WION's reporting on February 14. Sreenivasaiah hailed from Karnataka, a state in southern India, and had travelled to California to pursue his engineering studies at UC Berkeley. The Consulate General of India in San Francisco confirmed his disappearance and noted it was in contact with his family in India and with authorities in the United States. WION's reporting brought the story to a wide Indian audience globally, as the case of a young man from a South Indian family missing in the hills above an American university campus struck a chord with South Asian communities in both the diaspora and the subcontinent. The search for Sreenivasaiah drew participation from the local South Asian community as well as from UC Berkeley students and university officials, reflecting the close-knit nature of the Indian student population at Berkeley and across the Bay Area. [6]
Sources: [2] The American Bazaar · [3] Gulf News · [6] WION