On the streets of Pakistan's second biggest city, smog stings eyes and burns throats. Inside homes, few people can afford air purifiers to limit the damage of toxic particles that seep through doors and windows.
Lahore -- a city of 14 million people stuffed with factories on the border with India -- regularly ranks among the world's most polluted cities, but it has hit record levels this month.
Schools have closed in the main cities of Punjab, of which Lahore is the capital, until November 17 in a bid to lower children's exposure to the pollution, especially during the morning commute when it is often at its highest.
"The children are constantly coughing, they have constant allergies. In schools we saw that most of the children were falling sick," said Rafia Iqbal a 38-year-old primary school teacher in Lahore.
Her husband Muhammad Safdar, a 41-year-old advertising professional, said the level of pollution "is making daily living impossible".
"We cannot move around, we cannot go outside, we can do nothing at all," he told AFP.
World’s most-polluted city again
Smog continued to engulf Lahore as with the air quality index (AQI) recorded at 565 on Monday morning, the Punjab capital again emerged as the world’s most-polluted city, and the situation is worsening with each passing day, as no relief is in sight as there are less chances of rain, reported 24NewsHD TV channel.
The smoke emitted by vehicles and rising from the chimneys of factories, when combined with moisture in the air, produces smog.
The AQI over the city’s Syed Maratab Ali Road stood at 852, followed by 732 over the DHA’s Phase-8, 609 over the US consulate, 603 over the Ghazi Interchange, and 526 over the Askari-10.
It was cold in the morning while the minimum temperature was recorded at 21 degrees Celsius.
The Met Office forecast the temperature to go up to 28 degrees Celsius later in the day.
Multan, with the AQI recorded at 955, was the most polluted city in the country.
The city was followed by Lahore with AQI recorded at 565 and Peshawar with AQI 332.
Closure of markets at 8:00 on notified
The Punjab government on Monday issued a notification regarding closure of all markets, bazaars and shopping malls in Lahore, Faisalabad, Multan and Gujranwala region from today (November 11, 2024).
These restrictions will end on November 17, 2024, while all outdoor activities including holding of any sports event completely banned.
The Punjab government made the move after Lahore High Court’s orders to combat worsening smog.
As per LHC orders all shops, markets, bazaars, and shopping malls will be closed from 8 pm today.
All outdoor activities including games, ceremonies and festivals will be banned.
Motorway closed
Thick smog coupled with fog forced closure of Motorway from different sections in Punjab on Monday.
Motorway M-2 closed from Lahore to Bhera while M-3 was closed from Lahore to Darkhana.
Traffic on Lahore-Sialkot Motorway was also suspended due to smog and fog which engulfed the entire area.
Motorway M-4 was closed for all types of traffic from Pindi Bhatian to Multan, and traffic on M-5 was also remained suspended from Multan to Sukkur.
Syed Imran Ahmad spokesman of Motorway Police said that these measures were adopted for safety and security of general public.
The advised passengers to prefer to travel from 10 a.m. to 6 pm and while driving they turned lights on.
The Motorway spokesman further urged the people to avoid unnecessary travel on Motorway and maintain a reasonable distance from other vehicles.
In case of any assistance they should call on Helpline 130.
Air Quality Index Scale
According to the international Air Quality Index Scale, an index value of 300 or higher results is "hazardous" to health and Pakistan has regularly tipped over 1,000 on the scale.
In Multan, another city of several million people some 350 kilometres away, the AQI level passed 2,000 last week -- a staggering height never seen before by incredulous residents.
Access to parks, zoos, playgrounds, historic monuments, museums and recreational areas will be banned until November 17 and tuk-tuks with polluting two-stroke engines, along with restaurants that operate barbecues without filters have been banned in Lahore "hot-spots".
Air purifiers are luxury for most families, with the cheapest priced at around $90, with the added cost of replacing filters every few months in such extreme pollution.
Safdar and Iqbal do not have air purifiers and instead try to contain their children to one room.
"Preventive measures should have been taken. It's a yearly occurrence," Safdar said of the government. "Obviously there is something missing in their solution."
- Cloud of poison -
A mix of low-grade fuel emissions from factories and vehicles, exacerbated by agricultural stubble burning, blanket the city each winter, trapped by cooler temperatures and slow-moving winds.
The WHO says that air pollution can trigger strokes, heart disease, lung cancer and other respiratory diseases.
It is particularly punishing for children and babies, and the elderly.
Last year, the Punjab government tested artificial rain to try to overcome the smog, and this year, trucks with water cannons sprayed the streets -- with no results.
Special smog counters to triage patients have been established at clinics across the province, with 900 people admitted to hospital in Lahore alone on Tuesday.
Doctor Qurat ul Ain, a hospital doctor for 15 years, witnesses the damage from an emergency rooms in Lahore.
"This year smog is much more than previous years and the number of patients suffering from its effects is greater too," she told AFP.
Many arrive with laboured breathing or coughing fits and reddened eyes, often the elderly, children and young men who have breathed in the toxic air while on the back of motorbikes.
"We tell people not to go out and otherwise to wear a mask. We tell them not to touch their eyes with their hands, especially children," she adds.
For days the concentration of polluting micro-particles PM2.5 in Punjab has been dozens of times higher than that deemed tolerable by the World Health Organization (WHO).
Doctor Alia Haider, also a climate activist, is calling for awareness campaigns for patients who often do not know the dangers of smog.
Children from poor neighbourhoods, she said, are the first victims because they live all year round with pollutants of different types.
"We are stuck in our own poison," she said. It's like a cloud of gas over the city."
Reporters: Komal Aslam and Rana Faran Yameen/AFP