Kochi | Three women who lost their way while searching for their cows in a forest in Kerala's Ernakulam district have been rescued after a 14-hour intensive search operation, police said on Friday.

The women, identified as Parrukutty, Maya, and Darli Stephen, were found in the dense Arakkamuthy area, around six kilometres deep inside the forest.

Despite spending the night amidst wild animals, they were safely brought back to their village without any health issues, officials said.

The incident occurred in the forested region of Attikkalam near Kuttampuzha.

A large-scale rescue operation was initiated on Thursday involving police, fire and rescue teams, Excise department personnel, forest officials, and local residents.

Police received the first report of the missing women at around 3 pm on Thursday.

While initial contact was made with one of the women via phone, subsequent attempts to reach them failed, heightening concerns for their safety