LAHORE (Dunya News) – Once known as the iconic city of gardens due to its lush green beauty and planned urban management, Lahore has ironically turned into the world’s most polluted city with a badge of disgrace this once organic city continues to hold for almost a decade now.
The notorious smog blanket once again took the city in its grip with the overall Air Quality Index rising to an alarmingly high level above 1,000 on Saturday.
The upscale Defence Housing Authority (DHA) with 1,853 AQI topped the chart of the worst recorded index.
The AQI of Liberty Chowk was 1,208 whereas Shimla Hill and adjacent areas had an AQI reaching 1,007.
The air pollution is taking a huge toll on the health of citizens of Lahore with a surge in suffocation and eyesore.
Meanwhile, Kolkata had an AQI of 311 and Delhi trailing behind with and AQI of 258.
The AQI fluctuated in Lahore in the past one week after going past highly hazardous 1,000 mark in several parts, prompting the Punjab government to change school timings and making use of masks mandatory.
NO ROOM FOR SMOKE-EMITTING FACTORIES
In a written verdict during the hearing of a case on Oct 31 (Thursday), the Lahore High Court ordered demolition of smoke-belching factories.
Justice Shahid Karim, who has been issuing directives to curb smog for quite some time, issued the order on the petition of citizens including Haroon Farooq.
The court also ordered stringent action against those involved in burning crop residues or waste of houses and workplaces.
GREEN LOCKDOWN
A day earlier (Wednesday), the Punjab Environment Department in a major move to combat smog enforced “green lockdown” in parts of Lahore.
The department issued a notification of the lockdown on Davies Road, Egerton Road, Durand Road and Kashmir Road, along with the areas from Shimla Pahari to Gulshan Cinema and Abbott Road.
Additionally, the area from Shimla Pahari to the railway station and Empress Road were declared hotspots, and Queen Mary Road and its surroundings also were marked as polluted zones.
Traffic wardens were deployed on these roads to keep three-wheelers and smoke-emitting vehicles away from ‘hotspots’.
CM MARYAM CALLS FOR CLIMATE DIPLOMACY WITH INDIA
Earlier, Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz underscored the need for 'climate diplomacy' with India to tackle the scourge of smog.
She said at a Diwali event in Lahore that Pakistan must have diplomacy with India to fight smog.
“I am thinking of writing a letter to the Indian Punjab chief minister. This is not just a political issue but a humanitarian issue," she said.
“Winds don’t know there’s a border in the middle,” she remarked.
HEALTH CRISIS AND ADVISORY
Several hospitals in the city reported increasing number of cases of respiratory and allied complaints.
Medical experts have advised people to take precautions to avoid flu, skin allergy, eyesore and other suchlike diseases.
Environment experts say the use of substandard fuels such as plastic and rubber, especially in the cottage industry around Bund Road, contributes significantly to the deteriorating air quality.
Meanwhile, a ban has been imposed on use of fireworks in Lahore till Jan 31, 2025.