In Pakistan, the city of Lahore closes its schools for a week due to record pollution

On Saturday, the air quality index reached a level 40 times higher than that considered acceptable by the WHO in Pakistan's second city.

Lahore, Pakistan's second city, will close its schools for a week, up to primary school, announced Sunday, November 3, Marriyum Aurangzeb, minister of the government of the state of Punjab. A decision taken to avoid exposing millions of children to smog, this fog of pollution which now reaches records daily. On Saturday, the air quality index had reached a level 40 times higher than that considered acceptable by the WHO.

“All classes” welcoming children up to 10 years old, “public and private, under the jurisdiction of the city of Lahore, must remain closed for a week starting Monday”indicates a decision of the local government consulted by AFP. This document specifies that the situation will be assessed again next Saturday to determine whether this closure is renewed.

“Weather forecasts indicate that the wind pattern will remain the same for the next six days”Jahangir Anwar, senior environmental protection official within the Punjab government, has already told AFP. Regularly, India and Pakistan, neighboring countries whose relations are at their lowest, accuse each other of causing pollution peaks in each other's territory.

Smog is a mixture of fog and polluting emissions caused by low-end diesel fumes, fumes from seasonal agricultural burning and winter cooling. Prolonged exposure to smog can cause strokes, heart disease, lung cancer and respiratory illnesses, particularly in children.