LAHORE (Dunya News) – The capital of Punjab, Lahore, remained the most polluted city of the world on Thursday with an air quality index (AQI) of 708 with dense fog forcing closure of motorways at various points.
Smog persisted in Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa despites various steps of the provincial governments for the last one week.
The AQI in Multan was recorded at 559, Faisalabad 405, federal capital Islamabad 186 and Rawalpindi 199.
Peshawar with AQI 270 was the most polluted city of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
Earlier, fog blanketed several cities of Punjab, including Lahore, on the night between Wednesday and Thursday, paralysing routine life and disrupting road traffic.
According to a Motorway Police spokesperson, M2 from Sheikhupura to Kot Momin, M3 from Lahore to Darkhana, M4 from Pindi Bhattian to Abdul Hakeem, M5 from Shershah to Zahir Pir and M11 from Lahore to Sialkot have been closed to all kinds of traffic.
The Motorway police have appealed the drivers to drive slowly and switch on fog lights. They have also requested the people to stay home and avoid unnecessary travelling. Fog also disrupted traffic at several places in the province at the National Highways due to low visibility.
RAIN FORECAST
Meanwhile, the Meteorological Department forecast “chances” of rain in Lahore, Rawalpindi, Murree, Attock, Chakwal, Talagang, Jhelum, Faisalabad, Gujranwala, Mianwali, Khushab and Sargodha from on Thursday (today) till Nov 16.
There is also a possibility of snowfall on the mountains in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Kashmir and Gilgit-Baltistan during the week from today.
The meteorological experts expect that the rain would end smog.
RESTRICTIONS ON MARKETS PARTIALLY IMPLEMENTED
Meanwhile, the decision to close shops, shopping malls and markets in Lahore, Multan, Faisalabad and Gujranwala at 8pm was partially implemented despite sealing of shops by the district administrations.
The government also banned outdoor dining at restaurants, outdoor games, exhibitions and events from Nov 11 to 17.
HEALTH SITUATION WORSENS
The poisonous smoke has compounded health problems of people in Lahore and elsewhere.
According to health department figures, more than 35,000 patients visited five major hospitals in Lahore with smog-related problems in the last few days.
The health officials reported that most of the visitors were children having complaints of dry cough, difficulty in breathing, pneumonia and chest infection.
In a report a coulpe of days ago, UNICEF revealed that more than 11 million children under the age of five in Punjab are at risk due to highly polluted air.
Satellite images released by US space agency NASA showed dense smog enveloping Lahore and Multan last weekend. No roads and buildings could be seen due to smog.