Punjab sets up 'smog war room' to tackle hazardous air

In a bid to tackle Lahore's annual smog crisis and clear this thick layer of pollution blanketing Punjab, the government has set up a “smog war room" that aims to monitor the daily smog situation.

The poor air quality in Lahore pushed the capital to the top rankings as the world’s most polluted city, bringing the pollution index score to 1165 last week, followed by the Indian capital, Dehli. 

Alongside reviewing weather and air quality forecasts, the room will also monitor the “performance and action of the field office,” said a spokesperson Sajid Bashir.

“Staff from eight departments have been brought together to oversee tasks from controlling the burning of farm waste to managing traffic,” Reuters quoted an official. 

The session to analyse the data and brief the stakeholders will be held twice a day, and daily advisories will be issued to combat the pollution.

However, the efforts do not seem enough to tackle the smog, as a 1900 pollution index score was recorded on Wednesday, which is more than 120 times higher than recommended, prompting the closure of schools and orders to work from home.

Punjab’s Senior Minister Marriyum Aurangzeb accused India of not taking sufficient measures to mitigate the impact of smog, and the Chief Minister has decided to write to the Indian authority for climate diplomacy, in an attempt to tackle the problem.