When routine duties turned fatal: The human cost of the Nowgam blast

A routine forensic exercise inside the Nowgam police station turned catastrophic November 14 night, leaving nine men dead — each with a story of duty, quiet service, or simple everyday life interrupted without warning.

As investigations continue into the blast triggered during sample collection of seized explosive material, families across the Valley are left grappling with sudden loss.

Mohammad Amin Mir, a head constable at the Forensic Science Laboratory (FSL), had just reassured his younger brother that he would soon be home. Minutes later, the 45-year-old father of two — known for his calm discipline — was among those killed. A resident of Bemina, Mir had been part of the team tasked with examining the explosive-making materials stored at the station.

Alongside him was Peerzada Asrar-ul-Haq, a 38-year-old inspector with the Special Investigation Agency (SIA). A Shahwali village native of Kupwara district and an officer who dreamed of joining the civil services, Haq had twice missed clearing the JKAS by narrow margins. Colleagues remember him as a sharp investigator and a devoted family man. He leaves behind his parents, wife and three young children.

Also present as part of the magisterial oversight was Muzaffar Ahmad Khan, the Naib Tehsildar for Nowgam. The 35-year-old Budgam resident had been supervising the sampling process when the blast struck. At home are his two children — a young son and a nine-month-old daughter — who will now grow up without their father.

Two Crime Branch photographers documenting the procedure also lost their lives.
Javid Mansoor Rather, 42, from Tral, had taken up the camera for the police in 2017. Villagers described him as a soft-spoken man who never refused a call of duty. His three-year-old daughter will now grow up hearing stories of a father she barely knew.

His colleague, Arshad Ahmad Shah, from Kulgam, was the son of a retired policeman and a devoted father to two young children. “He was the flower of our family,” his uncle said, struggling to find words for the loss.

The victims also included Mohammad Shafi Parray, a 52-year-old tailor from Shankerpora who had been called in to stitch bags for storing the seized material. A familiar face in Nowgam market, Parray had spent decades at his sewing machine. On Friday, he simply answered a request for help — and never returned home.

Suhail Ahmad Rather, a chowkidar from Natipora, had been at the station as an independent witness. Known locally for running a small CSC centre, the young man is survived by his parents, who had expected him back within the hour.

The FSL also lost two more men — Ajaz Ahmad Mir, a senior grade Constable from Zainakote, and Showkat Ahmad, a lab assistant from Qamarwari who had been handling the samples. Both were part of the technical backbone of the forensic team, rarely in the spotlight but essential to every investigation.

As the Valley mourns, the Nowgam blast is no longer just a grim headline — it is nine families shattered, nine futures erased, and a reminder of the unseen risks borne every day by those who work behind the scenes of policing, governance and public service.