Air air pollution soars in Pakistan as Lahore battles smog; Multan’s AQI stays over 1,900

Pakistan’s Air High quality Index (AQI) soared to unprecedented ranges, sparking alarm throughout Punjab province as smog engulfed Lahore and Multan. Based on Swiss air high quality monitor IQAir, Lahore’s AQI rose to 760, whereas Multan reached a staggering 1,914, making it one of the polluted cities worldwide.
The acute air pollution has left authorities scrambling to regulate the smog, with restricted success reported.
Lahore, underneath a thick blanket of smog for days, has witnessed widespread highway closures because of low visibility, resulting in a number of accidents. A critical incident on GT Street close to Kalashah Kako noticed 9 folks injured when a van collided with a stationary truck, its driver unable to see the parked car by way of the dense haze.
The smog has additionally compelled Lahore excessive courtroom to mandate a shutdown of all commerce actions by 8 pm and shut markets on Sundays, aiming to attenuate pollution-inducing exercise.
In Multan, situations reached what specialists referred to as “apocalyptic” ranges, with the AQI exceeding 2,000 on Friday morning. The focus of PM2.5—a hazardous particulate matter identified to trigger extreme respiratory and cardiovascular points—was recorded at 947 micrograms per cubic meter, practically 190 instances above World Well being Group (WHO) pointers. The WHO deems PM2.5 ranges above 5 micrograms per cubic meter dangerous.
In response, the state authorities is on excessive alert, implementing emergency measures to curb air pollution ranges. Public parks and museums throughout main cities have been closed till no less than November 17.
Authorities have additionally confronted criticism for failing to implement preemptive anti-smog directives, with residents typically seen with out masks regardless of the extreme air high quality.
Multan, the most important metropolis in southern Punjab, recorded a particularly harmful Air High quality Index (AQI) of two,135 between 8am and 9am on Friday, in response to information from IQAir, as reported by Daybreak. Later within the day, the AQI readings remained perilous, reaching 980 by 10 pm—greater than thrice above the “hazardous” threshold of 300. A number of displays throughout Multan, together with these on the WWF-Pakistan Workplace, Shamsabad Colony, and Multan Cantonment, confirmed AQI ranges as excessive as 2,316, 1,635, and 1,527 respectively.
Authorities in Pakistan have attributed the worsening air high quality in Lahore to cross-border winds carrying pollution from neighboring India, alleging that these winds have pushed smog ranges to “harmful” extremes.