ISLAMABAD: The Punjab provincial administration announced Wednesday it will impose “green lockdowns” in Lahore’s smog hotspots as the city faces dangerously high Air Quality Index (AQI) levels, prompting strict measures to protect residents’ health and reduce escalating pollution levels.
The provincial authorities have already implemented several measures to combat Lahore’s hazardous smog, including a mandatory mask policy citywide and a temporary suspension of all outdoor school activities. Additionally, a ban on fireworks will remain in place until January 31, 2025.
The green lockdown will strengthen these efforts by restricting pollution-heavy activities such as outdoor cooking at barbecue spots and banning smoke-emitting public transport from operating in the city’s most affected areas
“There are eleven hotspots where AQI levels have been calculated, with Shimla Pahari currently identified as a key hotspot,” senior Punjab provincial minister Marriyum Aurangzeb told the province’s legislative assembly while listing down measures taken by the government to deal with the issue.
“Around this area, we’re mapping a green ring to enforce a green lockdown,” she added. “However, it doesn’t mean we are closing Shimla Pahari itself. Instead, we are halting construction activities within a one-kilometer radius from today and redirecting three-wheeler rickshaws away from this hotspot.”
She also noted that the government planned a “wall of trees” around the city to control carbon emissions and improve the air quality.
Lahore’s winter smog has become an annual crisis, with air quality deteriorating to hazardous levels each season. The city consistently ranks among the world’s worst for air pollution, leading to a significant rise in respiratory issues and hospital admissions, especially affecting children and the elderly.
Last year, the severe pollution levels prompted a surge in cases of asthma, lung infections and other respiratory problems among residents, according to media reports.
The problem prompted Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz Sharif this week to propose cross-border cooperation with Indian authorities to tackle shared pollution sources, such as crop residue burning, which exacerbates the region’s smog problem.
Pakistan imposes ‘green lockdown’ in Lahore smog hotspots as pollution hits hazardous levels
https://arab.news/2yjey
Pakistan imposes ‘green lockdown’ in Lahore smog hotspots as pollution hits hazardous levels
- Lockdown will restrict pollution-heavy activities, such as outdoor cooking, in designated areas
- Authorities plan a ‘wall of trees’ around the city to reduce carbon emissions, improve air quality
Pakistan plans up to $5 billion joint venture to redevelop Roosevelt Hotel in New York
- The hotel, a century-old Manhattan property owned by Pakistan International Airlines, has been closed since 2020
- The PM’s privatization adviser says the plan will boost the value of Pakistan’s stake even as its ownership share falls
KARACHI: Pakistan plans to redevelop its Roosevelt Hotel in New York into a high-rise building through a joint venture (JV) that could involve up to $5 billion in equity and debt financing, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s aide on privatization Muhammad Ali told Arab News on Friday.
The hotel, a century-old Manhattan property near Grand Central Terminal and Times Square, is one of Pakistan’s most valuable overseas assets and is owned by the state through Pakistan International Airlines.
Closed since 2020 due to losses, the hotel has been under review for years as successive governments have weighed whether to sell, lease or redevelop it while pursuing state-owned enterprise reforms linked to International Monetary Fund bailouts.
“The redevelopment project would require up to $5 billion equity and debt capital,” said Ali, who also chairs the Privatization Commission of Pakistan.
Ali said the government had decided against an outright sale of the property after a detailed study conducted last year showed the site could support a significantly larger structure, potentially rising to 60 stories.
“The redevelopment under the JV privatization model is expected to increase value of the property and thus Pakistan’s stake by more than 200 percent [in terms of value],” he continued.
Under the proposed joint venture structure, the government would contribute the land while a private partner would inject equity, with the remaining financing raised through debt, Ali said
He added that that while Pakistan’s economic interest in the project would rise, its ownership share would be reduced to about 50 percent once the transaction is completed.
He said a range of international players, including commercial banks and technology firms, had expressed interest in developing their own premises at the site, though he declined to identify potential partners.
Ownership of the hotel was recently transferred to PIA Holding Company Limited, the parent company of Pakistan International Airlines Corporation Limited, which the government privatized last month, with the airline now owned by a consortium led by the Arif Habib Group.
ADVISER RESIGNATION
Pakistan’s plans for the Roosevelt Hotel have faced repeated delays in recent years as authorities weighed competing options, including demolition, amid shifts in government policy.
On Dec. 24, a day after the PIA privatization, Defense Minister Khawaja Asif said the government was working on structuring a transaction for the New York property.
Meanwhile, a privatization ministry official said on condition of anonymity that the country’s financial adviser for the hotel’s sale, Jones Lang LaSalle Americas Inc. (JLL), has resigned due to a “conflict of interest.”
The official said JLL stepped down after the transaction structure was approved by the federal cabinet and the Competition Commission of Pakistan in July.
“The Privatization Commission will finalize the new adviser in the next four to six weeks,” he said, adding that expressions of interest will be issued after the new appointment is made.
Asked about the development, Ali said the new adviser would engage with potential joint venture partners on behalf of the government.
