The Pakistan government has expressed its worries regarding the deterioration in air quality in Lahore and has blamed the easterly winds that blow from India for the recent spurt of hazardous smog levels. Lahore is the capital city of Punjab province in Pakistan and recorded the highest ever air quality index (AQI) over the last weekend, causing officials to seek cooperation with India over cross-border pollution.
Concentration of PM 2.5-a major indicator of air pollution according to Punjab Environment Protection Department, had crossed more than 450 µg/m³ in Lahore classifying the air as “hazardous”. Such concentration of smoke and dust has several folds more than the prescribed safe daily limit by World Health Organization that has damaged them quite seriously. It is causing many children and older ones have respiratory and other such problems.
Cross-Border Issues Pointed out by Pakistan Authorities
Punjab Information Minister Azma Bokhari expressed the cause of worry with regard to the effect that wind currents have on Lahore’s atmosphere, as the latter is said to have been increased through trans-border pollution. “The direction of the winds brings the air from India into Pakistan, but it does not appear that India is doing much about it,” said Bokhari in a media briefing. Bokhari further added that Delhi, the capital of India, had the highest levels of smog in the world on Monday with an AQI of 393, closely followed by Lahore at 280.
Pakistan’s senior minister for Punjab, Marriyum Aurangzeb said that her office would make a formal request to the Foreign Ministry to address the cross-border pollution issue with the Indian authorities. Citing the need for coordinated responses, Aurangzeb said that Pakistan is expecting to start a dialogue about reducing air pollution across the border and mitigating its effects on shared environmental resources.
Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz said that a “climate diplomacy” needs to be built with India for the issues that prevail through air quality at different borders. She revealed a move to contact the Indian counterpart Punjab Chief Minister seeking bilateral support for reducing smog in both sides of the border. “We are experiencing a regional environmental crisis which requires an immediate joint response,” said Nawaz.
Lahore’s air quality has drastically deteriorated for several reasons, such as vehicular emissions, crop burning, and industrial activities. Such issues are not limited to Pakistan; numerous pollutants cross borders with the help of natural wind patterns. Presently, the wind coming from India has reportedly escalated smog levels in Lahore, raising AQI levels to alarming levels crossing 1,000 over the last two days.
Preventive measures and public health issues
The Punjab government has responded with measures to minimize public contact with the hazardous air quality. The government has ordered schools in Lahore to be temporarily closed for a week while schools for children with special disabilities have been closed for another three months. Health care professionals have warned citizens, specifically the elderly and young children, to stay indoors as much as possible and wear a mask if they have to go out.
The government statement warned that “people should not come out of their homes without a cause during this period. The elderly and children, who are more susceptible to pollution-related diseases, should exercise extreme care.” The pollution has further ignited the debate regarding the long-term health impacts since PM 2.5 has been linked to diseases in the respiratory and cardiovascular system.
Environmental Degradation in Lahore and Urbanization Issues
Lahor, previously known as the “City of Gardens,” was an epitome of lush greenery during the Mughal period, and it is not that today. Years of rapid changes due to urbanization have contributed to environmental challenges in this city: rapid population growth, infrastructure development, and decreasing green spaces. This all has intensified pollution levels that have now decreased the air quality significantly during winter months when smog typically worsens, as Lahore expands with a complete lack of green cover and an inefficiency in waste management.
Lahore city is smoggy or pollutant since the problems facing other places like New Delhi have overwhelmed the two nations. Burnings of seasonal crops remain one of the largest particulate matter emissions source, carried out as part of agricultural production. This method adopted by Indian and Pakistani Punjab in agricultural production generates considerable amounts of particulate matters and other pollutants in the air as well as contribution from other industries, with its substantial damage to the air quality.
Urgency for Regional Cooperation
The deterioration of smog in Lahore underlines the urgency of a cooperative approach between India and Pakistan to counter transboundary air pollution. So far, regional cooperation on issues of environment has been minimal, but increasing concerns for air quality are forcing the two nations to think about dialogue on common environmental policies. With smog expected to continue throughout the rest of the week due to sustained wind directions, Lahore’s air quality crisis underscores an urgent need for joint efforts in air pollution management.
These believe that an inter-governmental task force from both the countries would be able to deliberate over strategies to overcome common sources of pollution through better enforcement of bans on crop residue burning, investment in cleaner industrial practices, and initiatives to increase the green cover in urban areas.
As opposed to that, the former has the India Ministry of Environment and Climate Change has always concentrated on regional projects of environment, and likely the counterpart of this ministry in Pakistan may work together with their India counterpart to look at solutions across the border.
This will be complemented by having data-sharing agreements as to enable better monitoring and tracking sources of pollution plus the measuring of success levels of countermeasures introduced.
As the people of Lahore face unprecedented pollution, Pakistan’s appeal for climate diplomacy with India may be an important step toward better management of air quality across the region. Long-term relief for Lahore and other cities in South Asia may come from reductions in emissions at their source, farmer support through alternative agricultural practices, or enhanced green infrastructure in urban areas.
The present smog crisis reminds the world of the environmental and public health costs of industrial growth and urbanization without adequate safeguards. In the future, cooperative action by India and Pakistan to reduce transboundary air pollution may well become an integral part of regional environmental policy.