Punjab issues smog alert as Lahore air quality drops to dangerously low levels

• Polluted air to enter Lahore from Indian cities, authorities say.
• Traffic police warns citizens to drive carefully amid lower visibility.
• Punjab authorities impose ban on outdoor school activities in Lahore.

The Punjab Environment Protection Department on Sunday issued a smog alert for the province following an abnormal drop in Lahore's 24-hour average air quality index (AQI), which also affected the visibility in the provincial capital.

Lahore remained at the top of the list of the most polluted cities in the world with the AQI reaching an extremely low level, indicating a worsening smog situation in the provincial capital.

As Punjab battles with increasing smog with the arrival of winter season, the AQI of Punjab capital dropped as low as 700 this morning (Sunday) before improving to 537, according to IQAir, a Swiss air quality technology company.

According to the air quality classification by IQAir, the atmosphere becomes "hazardous" to health after the AQI crosses the 300 mark.

An AQI of 0-5 is considered "good", 51-100 is considered "moderate", 101-150 is "unhealthy for sensitive groups", 151-200 is simply "unhealthy", 201 - 300 is "very unhealthy", while more than 301 degrees indicates "hazardous".

As per the alert, polluted air is expected to enter Lahore from Amritsar, New Delhi, Chandigarh as well as the Amritsar as the smog-laden air pressure increased with winds moving towards Lahore at a speed of 7 kilometres per hour.

It also reminded the people of Lahore to take precautionary measures like checking AQI before exercising or walking outdoors, using mask before going to open place, keeping children from playing outdoors, and avoiding traveling to heavily smoggy areas.

In light of the smog situation, Lahore traffic police warned the citizens to be careful while driving motorcycles as the visibility in the city reduced to one kilometer.

Additionally, environmentalists highlighted that the air of Lahore is "very dangerous" for the citizens, calling for an environmental emergency to be enforced in the city.

They said that citizens must wear masks and avoid stepping out of homes unnecessarily. Furthermore, medical experts also warned residents of the spread of nose, eye and throat diseases as a result of hazardous air quality levels.

Smog is particularly bad in winter as a result of low-grade fuel from factories and vehicles in the low-lying megacity of 14mn, where denser cold air traps emissions at ground level. 

Seasonal crop burn-off by farmers on the outskirts of the provincial capital is also a major contributing factor.

Lahore and New Delhi are mostly the most polluted cities. Today, the latter retained its position as the second most polluted city on the scale, with an AQI of 270.

Meanwhile, the third most polluted city in the world today is Cairo, the capital of Egypt, where the AQI was 159. Here, the air quality is "unhealthy" for the citizens. 

Megacity Karachi ranked fourth in the list this morning as its AQI reached 162 before dropping to the 18th rank with an AQI of 98 by noon. 

Bad air quality is a major threat to the health as citizens in the polluted cities develop several medical issues, especially respiratory problems.

According to a report published last year which flagged the growing burden of hazardous air on health, rising air pollution can cut life expectancy by more than five years per person in South Asia, one of the world's most polluted regions. 

The Punjab authorities rush to tackle the worsening smog crisis with all arrangements made to deal hazardous levels of pollution.

The province banned outdoor school activities in Lahore would end from Monday. A Punjab School Education Department spokesperson said that the ban would last for three months until January 31.

School timings have also been changed to 8:45am, taking effect from October 28 till January 31, 2025. The school administrations have been directed to organise students' assemblies indoors.

Moreover, activities like fireworks have been banned till January, 31, 2025.