Two minor girls aged 13 and 14 have gone missing since the past 24 hours, after they came out of their houses to attend tuition classes at Adityapur in Seraikela-Kharsawan district, leaving investigating officers clueless.

Police have launched a search operation from Wednesday to look for Sonali Kumari, resident of Majhitola and Radha Sardar, resident of Tripura Colony of the Adityapur Municipal Corporation area, after one of the girls’ parents lodged a missing person report.

"We got to know about the two minors missing from Adityapur area at about 10.30 pm on Tuesday. We have started searching for the girls seriously, " Adityapur Police Station OC Rajendra Prasad Mahto said.

Sonali's father Dinesh Prasad said his daughter had gone for her coaching class in Adityapur at 3 pm on Tuesday like she would go every day.

"My daughter did not return home by 5 pm, which was her usual time of coming home. But when she didn't return even by 7 pm, we got anxious and started to search for her," he told The Telegraph Online.

Prasad who works at a factory in Adityapur industrial area said they first went over to the tuition teacher's house.

"But the teacher told us that Sonali had not come to the class on Tuesday. We got more nervous and started searching for her at her friends' houses, during which we came to know that Sonali was seen with one of her friends, Radha Sardar at Adityapur in the evening. On going over to Radha's house in Murari Colony, we found that she was missing from her house too. After that I lodged a missing person report with Adityapur Police Station late on Tuesday night, " said Prasad.

Mahto said they are talking to the parents of the missing girls and their close friends. He said they have circulated the girls’ photographs in railway stations, bus-stands and police stations of Seraikela-Kharsawan and adjoining districts.