Lahore, Multan, Peshawar most polluted cities in country

LAHORE: Polluted winds from India have engulfed most parts of Punjab and other areas as Lahore remained the most polluted city of the country, ARY News reported on Sunday.

Multan remained second and Peshawar third most polluted cities of the country with highest level of pollutants in the air.

The Air Quality Index reading of Lahore measured 753, Multan’s 587 and Peshawar’s 463. The AQI reading of Islamabad and Haripur has also been recorded above 200.

Motorway M-2, M-4 and M-5 have been closed owing to poor visibility, caused by foggy weather conditions.

Bad air continuing to haunt Lahore and several other cities despite authorities’ desperate efforts to curb smog.

Punjab’s senior minister Marriyum Aurangzeb has said that smog has not been a city or province’s problem, “it has become the problem of Pakistan and the region,” minister claimed.

She advised citizens to observe caution and residents of the most polluted cities avoid unnecessarily getting out of their homes.

Punjab government recently announced closure of schools upto higher secondary level in smog hit districts of the province till 17 November.

The decision made as the province grappling with severe air pollution, which have soared to alarming levels, affecting the public health, especially of children.

Lahore has been consistently ranked top among the most polluted cities globally, prompting urgent action from authorities.

Senior provincial minister Marriyum Aurangzeb said that the air direction from India, has been towards Lahore resulting in increasing smog. “This issue could not be resolved without talking to India.”

“Polluted eastern winds, blowing from India, have direction towards Lahore,” secretary environment protection agency, Jahangir Anwar said.

“This polluted air has added to smog in Lahore and given extraordinary boost to the AQI reading,” Anwar said.

Talking to AFP earlier, senior environmental protection official said, “We have never reached a level of 1,000.”

For days, Lahore has been enveloped by smog, a mix of fog and pollutants caused by low-grade diesel fumes, smoke from seasonal agricultural burning and winter cooling.

Air pollution level in Lahore once soared to more than 80 times over the level deemed acceptable by the World Health Organization (WHO), AFP said in a report.