Citizens’ report: Smog chokes Lahore again

Thick, gray and toxic smog has descended on Punjab again.

According to an Air Quality Index, the soupy air in Lahore is ‘hazardous’ to breathe, especially for young children. Another index ranked Lahore as the second most polluted city in the world.

If not controlled, the dirty air, warn health experts, will shorten lives and lead to a number of health problems in the residents of the province.

For three years in a row now, Punjab has been blanketed in smog and air pollution from October to November. This year is no different. As authorities slowly begin to respond, citizens of Punjab are taking matters into their own hands, by reporting to the social media the dirty air they are forced to live with.

Read also: In Punjab, hazardous air is putting lives at risk: Amnesty International

In response to the outrage, Malik Amin Aslam, the federal minister and advisor to the prime minister on climate change, put the blame on crop burning from India.

But citizens quickly pointed out that the claim was greatly exaggerated and an attempt to deflect responsibility. As one activist pointed out the winds are flowing in from West to East.