The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) of Punjab on Sunday imposed further restrictions in a bid to curtail smog, including ordering the early closure of markets and banning all outdoor activities in the worst-hit divisions.
Provincial capital Lahore continues to rank among the top 3 most polluted major cities of the world, though in Pakistan, Multan has taken the lead, recording a “hazardous” air quality index (AQI) of over 1,000 for several days. The blanket of smog that had largely impacted Punjab has also started veering north, with capital Islamabad and Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa capital Peshawar reporting high AQIs ranging from the “unhealthy” to the “hazardous.”
The smog has reduced visibility in major cities of Punjab and now Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa and boosted health concerns, with local hospitals warning of a surge in cases of ear, nose and throat infections as the pollution continues with no signs of abating. Since the current bout of smog commenced mid-October, the Punjab government has initiated several steps in a bid to curb it, including imposing a “green lockdown” in “hotspots” of Lahore; shuttering schools up till Grade 12 in Lahore, Multan, Faisalabad, and Gujranwala divisions, and making the wearing of face-masks mandatory. However, none of the steps have posted any significant impact, with Lahore—particularly—consistently reporting “hazardous” levels of its AQI.
Amidst this polluted atmosphere, Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz has decamped for Geneva for “medical” checkups. She has been joined by Senior Minister Marriyum Aurangzeb, who also heads the provincial environment ministry, showcasing the depth of their concern for citizenry that lacks the option to go abroad as pollution mounts.
On Sunday, the provincial government issued a new notification noting “critical air pollution events” had occurred in Lahore, Faisalabad, Multan and Gujranwala. “The average AQI of these districts has crossed the critical limit of 500, which is extremely hazardous for human health and wellbeing,” it stressed. It warned that the pollution had resulted in an “unprecedented” rise in patients with “lungs and respiratory diseases, allergies, eye and throat irritation, pink eye disease.”
As part of measures to curb smog and its ill-effects, read the notification, closure of all outdoor activities including outdoor sports events, exhibitions and festivals, and outdoor dining at restaurants was banned in Lahore, Faisalabad, Multan and Gujranwala. Religious congregations and unavoidable religious rites are exempt from this order. The notification also orders the closure of shops, markets and shopping malls at 8 p.m. in the stated districts, with the exemption of pharmacies, medical facilities, petrol pumps, bakeries, grocery stores, dairy shops, sweet shops, tandoors, vegetable/fruit shops, meat shops, e-commerce services, and utilities.
The notification warns that any violation of this order would invite penalties under Section 188 of the Pakistan Penal Code. It states the order would remain in place from Nov. 11 through Nov. 17.