LAHORE: Peshawar, the provincial capital of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, has left Lahore and Karachi behind to become the country’s most polluted city in Swiss group IQAir’s live rankings.
According to a report by IQAir, which tracks real-time data on air quality worldwide, Peshawar’s air quality index (AQI) measured at 364 in a hazardous category on Saturday morning.
For those who don’t know, the air quality index or AQI score of over 300 is considered “hazardous”, extremely harmful and seriously impacts those with existing diseases.
Meanwhile, Lahore, home to more than 14 million people, ranks as the second city in the country while fifth on the global pollution chart with an AQI soaring to 225.
Multan is ranked as the country’s third most polluted city. The air quality index (AQI) in Multan peaked at 198.
Pakistan’s largest city Karachi ranked fourth with an AQI of 196.
An AQI below 50 is considered good ‘moderate’ between ’51 and 100′, ‘unhealthy for sensitive group’ at ‘101 and 150’, ‘unhealthy’ at ‘151-200’, very unhealthy at 201-300, 301 and above is ‘hazardous’.
According to this year’s Life Quality Index Institute report, compiled by the University of Chicago’s Energy Policy Institute, the people of Lahore could have had their lives shortened by 7.5 years due to the poor air they breathe.
To control the smog crisis, the Punjab government has this month closed public places including parks, zoos, playgrounds, joy/play lands, historical places, monuments, and museums in smog-hit districts including Lahore.
Federal Planning Minister Ahsan Iqbal has described smog as a serious threat and said that it is likely to cause 250,000 premature deaths.
The provincial capital has been the most polluted city in the world for many days.
