According to the International Air Quality Index scale, an index of 300 or more is dangerous to health (Photo: AFP).
The streets of Lahore, the capital of Punjab province, are covered with a white sheet of smog. Every other person seems to complain of burning eyes, sore throats, and shortness of breath.
Individuals who are financially stable are using air purifiers at home to avoid the harmful effects of smog.
According to the French news agency AFP, every other day Lahore is included in the list of the most polluted cities in the world. Air quality index was recorded above 1000 several times this month.
In view of the smog, the provincial government has closed the primary schools till November 17 by imposing green lockdown in Lahore.
Rafia Iqbal, a 38-year-old primary school teacher, says that the children are constantly coughing, they have allergies. In the schools we saw that most of the children were falling ill.’
Her husband Muhammad Safdar, 41, who works in the advertising sector, said pollution levels were making daily life impossible.
“We can’t move around, we can’t go out, we can’t do anything,” he told AFP.
According to the International Air Quality Index scale, an index of 300 or more is hazardous to human health And in Pakistan this level is often exceeding 1000.
At a distance of about 350 km located The air quality index level in Multan city crossed two thousand last week.
In view of this situation, a ban has been imposed on parks, zoos, playgrounds, museums and historical and recreational places till November 17.
Apart from this, open barbeque restaurants without filters have been banned in Lahore.
According to the notification issued by the DG Environment Protection Department, the use of proper chimneys and exhausts will be required for open barbeque.
Rafia Iqbal and Mohammad Safdar do not have an air purifier at home and try to keep their children inside one room.
Mohammad Safdar said that ‘precautionary measures should have been taken. It happens every year. It is obvious that their measures are insufficient.’
WHO says that air pollution can cause stroke, heart disease, lung cancer and other respiratory diseases.
Smog counters have been set up in clinics across the province to treat smog-affected patients. On Tuesday, 900 people were admitted to a hospital in Lahore who were sick due to smog.
“The smog this year is much higher than previous years and the number of patients suffering from its effects is also higher,” Dr. Qarat Al Ain, who has been working at the hospital for 15 years, told AFP.
He said that ‘We ask people not to go out or wear masks. We ask them, especially children, not to touch their eyes with their hands.’
Last year, after the worsening smog situation, the caretaker government decided to send artificial rain.
Medical experts have instructed citizens to stay at home and wear masks when going out The use of is suggested.
According to environmentalists, the increasing pollution is not only harmful to humans but also to the birds and plants in the city.
The environment department of Pakistan’s Punjab province believes that the smog that Lahore is currently experiencing is due to the polluted air coming from India.
Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz also said that she will talk to Indian Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann about the increasing pollution in Lahore.
