Lakhimpur Kheri (UP), Feb 24 (IANS): The four girls who went missing on their way to school on Tuesday, were found in Uttarakhand on Wednesday.

SP Vijay Dhul said that the girls had left their homes to visit Uttarakhand. They were staying at a hotel under Muni ki Reti police station in Tehri Garhwal district.

They have been safely recovered by a police team that went from here. The Uttarakhand police also helped in tracking down the girls.

The police team is now bringing the girls back.

According to the police, technical surveillance was used to track down the girls, three of whom are minors.

One of the girls, 20, a student of Class 12, had left home with Rs 25,000 cash. She, along with three minor girls aged between 15 to 16 years, were seen boarding the bus.

The SSP said, "The bus conductor, who identified the girls, said he had dropped them at Sitapur bus stand. It appears from the CCTV clips and the conductor's account, that the girls left home on their own. We do not see anyone accompanying them."

The girls had all turned off their mobile phones and their last location was traced to Sitapur.

The police scanned CCTV footages of the bus stand and railway station and coordinated with their counterparts in Sitapur and Lucknow in the search operations.