The Punjab government has insisted that there should be no politics over smog, environmental protection and public health, as Lahore again topped the global ranking of major polluted cities and the toxic haze blanketed cities across the province.
“Smog is not a political issue. It is a scientific, environmental and public health challenge,” senior minister Marriyum Aurangzeb told a press conference on Wednesday, even as Lahore, Multan and other major cities and towns in the province remained under a thick layer of smog.
On Wednesday night, Lahore remained on top of the global ranking of major polluted cities, recording an air quality index (AQI) reading of 358. Live monitoring data on Thursday morning still showed the city in the hazardous range, with readings around 375 to 397 and PM2.5 as the main pollutant.
Second-placed New Delhi, with an AQI reading of 248 on Wednesday, faced a different problem: the toxic smog was so severe this week that air pollution monitors in the country were overwhelmed after pollutant concentrations exceeded the upper measurement limits on their instruments. Official data therefore failed to capture the full extent of the smog for several hours overnight from Sunday into Monday, just as pollution surged with a barrage of fireworks for Diwali.
The Punjab Environment Protection Agency, in its assessment for the Diwali period, found that pollution-laden air from India travelled deep into Punjab, contributing to increased particulate matter concentrations. Readings from the province’s air quality monitoring network showed a marked geographical variation: the Wagah Border monitoring station recorded a 275% increase in PM2.5 concentrations, reaching its peak between 3am and 4am.
Lahore’s overall AQI increased from 366 on 8 November to 440 on 9 November, reaching its highest recorded value at 9am, the agency’s analysis showed. The figures underline how quickly conditions deteriorated in the space of a single day.
The heavy smog has already disrupted daily life. Earlier this week it forced motorway closures, with the section from Shamkot to Abdul Hakeem closed to all traffic on Tuesday evening and heavy traffic on the Sher Shah–Multan section towards Khanewal also suspended. The smog has also forced the second Pakistan–Sri Lanka Test out of Lahore to Rawalpindi.
There is one comparison that offers a measure of perspective. On 11 November 2024, Lahore’s AQI exceeded 2,000 and reached alarming levels of approximately 2,400. On 11 November 2026, the AQI stayed below 450 — still hazardous, but far below last year’s extreme.
Even so, the health risks remain severe. An AQI above 300 is classed as hazardous, and at those levels the air is dangerous for everyone, not only for children, the elderly and people with heart and lung conditions. Doctors advise avoiding outdoor activity, keeping windows closed and wearing masks when going outside is unavoidable.
The provincial government’s message is that the crisis should be treated as a public health emergency rather than a political football. Whether that framing holds will depend on what happens next: the smog season in Punjab typically runs from October to February, and with winter still ahead, Lahore and the rest of the province are likely to face more hazardous days before the air clears.
For now, the city remains at the top of a ranking nobody wants to lead, and millions of people are breathing air that official monitors describe as hazardous — while across the border, Delhi’s instruments could not even measure how bad its own air had become.
