Ahmedabad: Burglars broke into an air quality monitoring station located near Sardar Patel Stadium in Naranpura and stole equipment worth Rs 7.6 lakh, according to an FIR registered with Naranpura police on Wednesday.The complainant, Sudhir Vishwakarma (31), who works as an executive engineer with Envea Pvt Ltd, said the company operates air quality monitoring stations (AQMS) for the Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology (IITM) at various locations across the city.
The Naranpura station is housed within IITM premises near the stadium and is managed during regular hours by an assigned engineer. According to the complaint, on Aug 29, 2025, Vishwakarma visited another IITM station at Victoria Garden near Lal Darwaza. On the same day, the Naranpura AQMS office was locked at around 6pm as scheduled. The following day, while remotely checking server data, the system appeared offline. Initially, officials suspected a routine power or internet disruption. However, when the system failed to resume operations, Vishwakarma and another engineer visited the Naranpura station on the afternoon of Aug 31. They found the office ransacked. The stolen items include a nitrogen cylinder worth Rs 39,500, batteries valued at Rs 1.2 lakh, and an external air compressor pump worth Rs 1.7 lakh. Vishwakarma said the delay in filing the FIR was due to procedural requirements, as bills and documentation for the equipment had to be obtained from IITM. Inspector VJ Chavda said investigation is on.
