Smog continues to choke Lahore

LAHORE: The air quality index of the provincial capital of Punjab fell into the ‘very poor’ category on Monday with Lahore engulfed in dense smog, causing people difficulty breathing.

Among many other cities of the country gasping for breath, Lahore tops the list this year too. The intense air pollution crisis intensifies, particularly in the winter season when the burning of agricultural biomass residue correlates with cooler temperatures that confine toxic smoke.

The Punjab government has announced to take strict action against who do not abide by steps taken by government to curb smog.

According to the Air Quality Index (AQI), the amount of polluted particles in the atmosphere of Lahore was 410 while in Karachi 155 particulate matter was recorded.

Pollution of 201 to 300 degrees is extremely harmful to health while more than 301 degrees indicates dangerous pollution, according to the AQI classification

Read more: ‘We thought he had Covid but it was smog’: Life in polluted Pakistan

Earlier, Punjab Chief Minister Usman Buzdar-led provincial government announced the closure of public and private educational institutions (schools, colleges and academies etc.) in the provincial capital, along with, weekly holidays (Saturday and Sunday) with effect from November 27 till January 15, 2022.

In his order, Relief Commissioner Punjab Babar Hayat Tarar also announced that all private offices being operated by companies, private sector entities and other individuals, within the territorial limits of Lahore Metropolitan Corporation, will remain closed for the same three days from November 27 till January 11, 2022.

There was evidence of persistent deterioration in the Air Quality Index (AQI) of Lahore, fluctuating from satisfactory to poor levels, which was likely to cause breathing discomfort, respiratory tract diseases and heart diseases amongst people of all age brackets, Tarar added.

“Whereas people in Punjab, with the highest ratio in Lahore, continue to be infected by Covid-19 and further overlap of conducive conditions for respiratory tract disease due to smog could exacerbate the situation,” the commissioner added in his order.

The provincial cabinet of Punjab, in its 36th meeting, declared smog as calamity under Section-3 of “The Punjab National Calamities (Prevention and Relief) Act 1958,” which had been notified vide Relief Commissioner’s Order No.Smog-2020/10/Coord-I dated October 10, 2020, and all possible measures to contain and arrest the deterioration of ambient AQI, especially in territorial limits of the city of Lahore and Punjab, in general, were required to be taken, said the relief commissioner Punjab.

Babar maintained that, in his opinion, there were sufficient grounds to proceed under Section-4(2)(h) of “The Punjab National Calamities (Prevention and Relief) Act, 1958”, as an immediate preventive and speedy remedy, and the directions hereinafter appearing, were necessary to ensure public safety, conserve lives and preempt and mitigate the imminent threat of smog in the province of Punjab.

“I have taken this decision in exercise of the powers under Section 4(2)(h) of ‘The Punjab National Calamities (Prevention and Relief) Act, 1958,’” he added.