Pakpattan tops Punjab pollution ranking

Pakpattan recorded Punjab's highest city-level Air Quality Index (AQI) at 149 at 3:00pm on Saturday, as the Pakistan Meteorological Department forecast mainly dry weather across most of the province.

Nankana Sahib followed at 140, with Sahiwal at 137, Okara 135, Multan 133, Mandi Bahauddin and Talagang 130, Faisalabad 127 and Dera Ghazi Khan 121, according to the Punjab Environmental Protection Agency's dashboard.

Another monitoring website showed Lahore's reading of 118 at 5:00pm, in the moderate range, compared with 109 at the same hour on Friday.

Barki Road recorded the city's highest reading at 218, classified as unhealthy.

Readings from 101 to 150 fall in the moderate band on the portal's scale, while 151 to 200 is classed as unhealthy for sensitive groups.

The EPA advises children, senior citizens and those with pulmonary or heart conditions to consider reducing prolonged or strenuous outdoor activities when pollution readings are moderate.

Short-term exposure to fine particulate matter in the air can aggravate asthma and other respiratory symptoms and is associated with cardiovascular effects.

A PMD forecast showed that mainly dry weather was expected in most of Punjab on Sunday.

Lahore was expected to remain sunny, with a highest temperature of 30°C to 32°C. The forecast gave a range of 29°C to 31°C for Monday.

The department said light rain or thunderstorms were possible at isolated places in Gilgit-Baltistan and adjoining hilly areas.