Punjab closes schools as pollution worsens
Authorities in the Pakistani province of Punjab have ordered educational institutions in several areas to close until November 17 and shift to online teaching to protect children and curb pollution.
The province, home to more than half of Pakistan’s 240 million people, had earlier closed primary schools, curbed tuk-tuks and shuttered some barbecue restaurants in megacity Lahore.
“Looking at the predicted air wind and air quality index, we are closing all higher secondary schools,” said Marriyum Aurangzeb, a senior minister in Punjab, during a press conference in Lahore.
Live rankings by Swiss group IQAir gave Lahore a pollution index score of 1,165, followed by the Indian capital of New Delhi, with 299.
Record-high air pollution in Lahore is sending more people to hospitals and private clinics, doctors said, as authorities warned a complete lockdown could be imminent if residents fail to don face masks and follow other guidance related to smog.
Doctors highlighted that most people are complaining of either having a cough or they feel their eyes are burning.
Other affected cities include Faisalabad, Pakistan’s third-largest, as well as Multan and Gujranwala.
The province of Punjab has also set up a “smog war room” to tackle severe pollution, officials said.
The war room will bring together staff from eight departments, with a single person charged with overseeing tasks that range from controlling the burning of farm waste to managing traffic.
Twice daily sessions will analyze data and forecasts to brief stakeholders on efforts to fight pollution, and issue daily advisories, the officials added.
The Pakistan government has also said it was looking into methods to induce artificial rainfall to combat the pollution.
But the index score for Lahore fell short of last week’s unprecedented reading of 1,900 in some areas, an excess of more than 120 times over recommended levels, prompting bans on some building activity and orders to work from home.
