Winter is coming back, and so is the smog in Punjab’s capital, Lahore. The Air Quality Index (AQI) depicts it as the world’s most polluted city, as per data released early on Tuesday.
Lahore has crossed the 400 US AQI mark which is a sign of air quality being hazardous, the worst possible.
Geo News reports that healthy air is below 50 US AQI, which measures PM2.5 particles. However, Lahore’s air is 80 times more polluted than a healthy level.
Direction of air flow changing
Environmentalist Yasir Hussain explained to Geo News, “With the season direction of air flows have changed. In winter, wind flows from Pakistan to India. Agricultural waste burning, vehicle exhaust and power production cause the most air pollution. Due to a slower pace of wind in winter, the polluted air stays in the city, combining fog and pollutants from burning into deadly smog.”
Classification of IQAir
According to AQIAir, 0-5 is considered “good”, 51-100 is considered “moderate”, 101-150 is “unhealthy for sensitive groups”, 151-200 is simply “unhealthy”, 201 – 300 is “very unhealthy” and more than 301 degrees indicates “hazardous”.
Other rankings
The second most polluted city on the list is New Delhi with a “very unhealthy” air quality.
Dubai, in the United Arab Emirates, comes third.
Meanwhile, Karachi ranks 13th on the list of most polluted cities.
Despite the Punjab government’s desperate measures to fight off smog, Lahore has topped the list of most polluted cities the second time in a week.
The provincial government is deliberating the option of artificial rain in the province with a cost of Rs5 million to Rs7 million.
“Artificial rain will not be needed if we improve the environment through measures against smoke,” remarked Senior Punjab Minister Marriyum Aurangzeb.
The AQI in Lahore crosses 1000 in December every year.
