While some of the world’s most populous cities like Delhi, Mumbai, Beijing, and New York have high-levels of air pollution resulting in terrible air quality, Pakistan’s Lahore city has earned the dubious distinction of being the world’s most polluted city with its Air Quality Index (AQI) inching towards the 700 mark on Sunday.
According to ARY News, citing global monitoring bodies, Lahore recorded an AQI of 690 on Sunday, placing the city at the top of the world’s most polluted cities list. Lahore’s hazardous air quality has prompted health authorities to issue warnings, advising citizens to take immediate precautions.
As per the report, Lahore residents are witnessing a surge in respiratory illnesses, including cough, viral flu, and sore throat, due to the city’s air quality, which has dipped to hazardous levels.
Health experts have recommended citizens to wear masks and goggles and avoid unnecessary outdoor activities, among other precautionary measures, to mitigate the risks posed Lahore’s poisonous air.
In its health recommendation, the AQI report advised Lahore citizens o avoid outdoor exercise, close windows to avoid dirty outdoor air, wear a mask outdoors, and use an air purifier at home for fresh air, the ARY News report said, adding that Lahore’s terrible air quality has raised concerns about the long-term impact of air pollution on the city’s inhabitants.
According to experts, the air becomes heavier in the winter as compared to the summer, causing poisonous particles in the atmosphere to move downwards and making the atmosphere polluted, as a result of which large areas are covered with a layer of polluted particles, including large amounts of carbon and smoke.
The smoke produced by burning crop remnants, factories, and burning coal, garbage, oil or tyres enters the atmosphere, and the impact of this appears at the onset of winter and remains till the season’s end, they added.
(With ANI inputs)
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