LAHORE: As the smog reaches an alarming level in serval cities of Punjab, specifically Lahore, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has ordered strict measures including imposing a green lockdown in the polluted hotspots of the provincial capital and declaring a three-month-long holiday.
Separately, the Punjab EPA has also ordered all Schools of Special Education in Lahore to send students with medical conditions, triggered by poor air quality, on a three-month leave from Friday.
Director General Punjab EPA, Dr. Imran Hamid Sheikh, issued an order stating that public and private special schools should send “those students on compulsory leave who are suffering from conditions exacerbated by poor air quality.”
The conditions include broncho-vascular diseases (chest infections, throat infections, asthma, flu, cough, tuberculosis, pulmonary problems, allergies, etc) or cardio-vascular diseases (angina, arrhythmias, coronary artery disease, etc) or immunodeficiency (CVID, etc).
The directive will take effect from November 1, 2024, (Friday) till Jan 31, 2025.
Smog declared calamity
In a notification, the Provincial Disaster Management Authority (PDMA) has declared smog a calamity under Section 3 of the Punjab National Calamities (Prevention and Relief) Act, 1958.
The authority has advised concerned departments to take measures against any activities that have contributed to the hazardous smog conditions. PDMA also delegated the powers of relief commissioners to deputy commissioners to take all necessary measures to control and mitigate smog.
The PMDA, as mentioned in the notification, banned all activities causing or leading to smog formation across the province.
The pollution-causing activities that are banned include:
- Burning of any type of crop residue, solid waste, tyres, rubber, and plastics
- Vehicles emitting visible smoke
- All industries working without emission control system
- All stone crushers operating without wet scrubbers
- Sale and use of all types of sub-standard fuels
- All types of encroachments that caused hindrance in the smooth flow of traffic on public roads
- All types of activities without proper safeguards which contribute to generating fugitive dust
The alarming Air Quality Index (AQI) of 165 — unhealthy for human health — was reported in Lahore on Thursday at 4:17 pm, according to the global air quality monitoring platform, IQAir.
On Monday night, Lahore was the most polluted city in the world, touching 405 AQI points, hazardous.
To curb the level of toxic smog, the Punjab government has imposed a ‘green lockdown‘ in air pollution hotspots of the provincial capital.
The restrictions are placed in several locations including Abbott Road (from Shimla Hill to Gulistan Cinema), Empress Road (from Shimla Hill to Railway Headquarters), Queen Mary Road (Durand Road to Allama Iqbal Road), Davis Road, Egerton Road, Durand Road, Kashmir Road.
These worst-hit areas of the metropolis will face several restrictions, including a complete ban on construction activities, and rickshaw pullers will not be allowed to enter these areas. Commercial generators violating Punjab’s environmental standards will also be banned.
All open cooking and BBQ setups must be shut down as soon as possible, food outlets are prohibited from using charcoal, coal, or wood unless equipped with a proper emission control system. Moreover, marriage halls will be closed after 10 pm.
Officials also directed wet sweeping by Lahore Waste Management Company (LWMC). Government and private offices operating in these zones are required to implement a work-from-home policy from November 4, 2024, with 50 percent rotation based on need.
The measures are part of the government’s efforts to tackle the acute air quality crisis affecting the provincial capital, aimed at protecting public health and reducing pollution levels.
