Lahore, Karachi rank among 10 cities with world's worst air quality

• Karachi records particulate matter (PM) rating of 183
• Lahore records a particulate matter (PM) rating of 170 

Lahore and Karachi on Monday made their way into the top 10 rankings of the cities that have the world's worst air quality. 

According to IQ Air, Lahore ranked sixth, while Karachi was placed at number four right behind Kyrgyzstan's Bishkek, Bangladesh's Dhaka, and Mongolia's Ulaanbaatar.

Read more: Have Karachi and Lahore made it to the list before? 

Karachi and Lahore recorded a particulate matter (PM) rating of 183 and 170, respectively, that classifies the two cities under the "unhealthy" category of air quality.

The United States Environmental Protection Agency regards air quality satisfactory if the AQI is under 50. 

To reduce the smog, the provincial disaster management authority (PDMA) in Punjab has sealed 1,759 brick kilns, 2,728 industries, and impounded 12,197 vehicles until December 12.

Read more: Did Lahore ever top the list of the cities with worst air quality?

The PDMA has arrested 547 people for harming the environment, according to a report released by the authority from December 12.