Rehan Qayoom Mir
Srinagar, Nov 15: Following a massive accidental blast that left nine people dead and 32 injured at Nowgam Police Station here last night, Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha on Saturday chaired a high-level meeting with top police and civil administration officers to assess the situation.
The meeting was attended by Chief Secretary Atal Duloo, Director General of Police Nalin Prabhat, ADGP CID, Nitish Kumar, ADGP SJM Gilani, Divisional Commissioner Kashmir Anshul Garg, IGP Kashmir, V K Birdi and other top officials.
The Lieutenant Governor, sources said, reviewed the security and asked the top brass to maintain a tight vigil so that anti-peace elements are kept at bay. “LG Sinha expressed grief and sorrow over the loss of precious lives, including policemen, officials and a civilian tailor.”
“LG Sinha directed the top officials of the civil administration to make sure that injured get the best possible healthcare facilities. He also asked them to reach out to the families of the deceased persons,” sources added.
They said the officials provided feedback to LG Sinha about the emerging situation and steps that were taken after the unfortunate blast.
Pertinently, an accidental explosion occurred around 11:20 pm on Friday when a specialised team was extracting samples from a large and “unstable” cache of explosives confiscated in connection with an ongoing ‘white-collar’ terror module investigation.
The blast left nine people dead among the deceased were six policemen — State Investigation Agency Inspector Israr Ahmad Shah, Selection Grade Constables Javaid Mansoor Rather and Arshid Ahmad Shah (both Crime Branch photographers), Selection Grade Constable Aijaz Afzal Mir and Constables Mohammad Amin Mir and Showkat Ahmad Bhat (all three working with the Forensic Science Laboratory).
Naib Tehsildar Muzaffar Ahmed Khan, Chowkidar of the area Suhail Ahmad Rather, and Mohammad Shafi Parray, a tailor.
