Lahore air worse than Delhi, Kolkata

Dera Ghazi Khan, Kot Addu, Nankana Sahib, Sahiwal record hazardous air quality

The provincial capital recorded a US AQI of 196 on Monday evening, placing it ahead of New Delhi and Kolkata in the global ranking.

The Punjab Environmental Protection Department's dashboard recorded an AQI of 481 at Kahna Nau, placing it in the hazardous category, while Shahdara and Multan Road registered readings of 330 and 326, respectively.

The readings showed substantial variation across Lahore, with the AQI at Barki Road recorded at 193 and DHA Phase 6 at 182.

The dashboard classified Shahdara and Multan Road as very unhealthy, while several other monitoring stations remained in the unhealthy or unhealthy-for-sensitive-groups categories.

AirIQ's global city ranking placed Lahore first with a US AQI of 196, followed by Delhi at 185 and Kolkata at 180. Almaty in Kazakhstan recorded 168, while Ulaanbaatar in Mongolia registered 167.

The provincial dashboard also showed severe air pollution elsewhere in Punjab. Dera Ghazi Khan, Kot Addu, Nankana Sahib and Sahiwal recorded an AQI of 500, while Khushab registered 466. Faisalabad and Vehari 452 each, followed by Okara at 443 and Multan 412.

The Pakistan Meteorological Department said fog and smog were likely at isolated places in Lahore and several other cities on Tuesday morning. Lahore's predicted maximum temperature was 31°C, with partly cloudy conditions expected on Wednesday.

Senior Minister Marriyum Aurangzeb said air quality had improved at several monitoring locations because of sustained government action, favourable weather conditions, increased wind speeds and continuous field monitoring.

She also attributed pollution affecting Lahore to winds from India following Diwali fireworks across the border.

She said the AQI at the Civil Secretariat had fallen from 614 to 155, Bedian from 746 to 172, Upper Mall from 621 to 177 and Punjab University from 768 to 181. Allama Iqbal Town had recorded a decline from 1,063 to 207, she added.

The senior minister said enforcement operations had continued against industrial units and brick kilns violating environmental regulations.

Over the preceding 24 hours, 11 industrial units were sealed and fines totalling Rs900,000 were imposed.

Authorities also inspected 112 brick kilns, demolished three and sealed four. One case was registered and fines of Rs200,000 imposed. Eight kilogrammes of substandard plastic was also seized.

The senior minister said measures were being taken to ensure that commercial kitchens and barbecue outlets installed suction hoods to control smoke emissions. Dro ne, night and field surveillance teams were monitoring pollution sources and carrying out enforcement actions.

She urged farmers not to burn crop residue, municipal waste or plastic, warning that smoke from any source contributed to air pollution.

She also advised residents to avoid unnecessary outdoor activities, keep smoke-emitting vehicles off the roads and take particular care of older people, children and those with respiratory illnesses.

Marriyum Aurangzeb appealed to citizens to cooperate with enforcement personnel and follow advisories issued by the Environmental Protection Agency. She said the government would continue enforcing environmental laws and controlling pollution sources.