Amid severe smog, the city of Punjab, Rojhan beats Lahore with a score of 667 as of 6:00am Monday, according to Air Quality Index (AQI).
Meanwhile, Lahore’s air quality stands at 560.
Both cities’ air is quite unbreathable as the government is thinking ways to combat smog which is now getting out of hands.
Lahore often ranked as world’s polluted cities, however, recently Multan and Peshawar also broke records with high air pollutants.
Last week, AQI reading in Multan crossed the 2,000-mark.
The largest city in South Punjab, recorded an AQI reading of 2,135 between 8am and 9am, according to IQAir, a Swiss air quality monitor.
The concentration of PM2.5 — fine particulate matter in the air that causes the most damage to health — was 947 micrograms per cubic metre, which is 189.4 times above the WHO guideline, as per IQAir.
The smog situation in Multan’s surrounding districts of Bahawalpur, Muzaffargarh, and Khanewal was also the same, resulting in reduced visibility on roads.
What is govt doing to combat smog?
A “complete ban” has been imposed on the entry of people in parks, zoos, playgrounds, monuments, museums and play lands in Lahore, Sheikhupura, Kasur, Nankana Sahib, Gujranwala, Gujrat, Hafizabad, Mandi Bahauddin, Sialkot, Narowal, Faisalabad, Chiniot, Jhang, Toba Tek Singh, Multan, Lodhran, Vehari and Khanewal.
Motorways Police on Sunday closed the road at different sections due to dense smog.
Citizens are advised to travel during the day – from 10 am to 6 pm – to avoid any untoward incident.
Schools are closed, workers have been told to stay home and people urged to stay indoors – part of a so-called “green lockdown”, which has also seen motorbike rickshaws, heavy vehicles and motorbike parking banned from hot spot areas.
Lahore High Court had ordered all the markets in the Punjab province to close by 20:00 each night, with complete closures on Sundays. Parks and zoos have also been shut until November 17.
