LAHORE: Pakistan’s Punjab province banned most outdoor activities and ordered shops, markets and malls in some areas to close early from Monday to curb illnesses caused by intense air pollution.
The province has already closed educational institutions and public spaces like parks and zoos until Nov. 17 in places including Lahore, the world’s most polluted city in terms of air quality according to Swiss group IQAir’s live ratings.
The districts of Lahore, Multan, Faisalabad, and Gujranwala have seen an unprecedented rise in patients with respiratory diseases, eye and throat irritation, and pink eye disease, the Punjab government said in an order issued late on Sunday.
The new restrictions would also remain in force until Nov. 17, it said.
“The spread of conjunctivitis/ pink eye disease due to bacterial or viral infection, smoke, dust or chemical exposure is posing a serious and imminent threat to public health,” it said.
While outdoor activities including outdoor sports events, exhibitions and festivals, and outdoor dining at restaurants have been prohibited, “unavoidable religious rites” are exempt from this direction, the order said.
Some outlets like pharmacies, oil depots, dairy shops, and fruit and vegetable shops have similarly been exempted from the directions to close by 8 p.m. local time.
Lahore’s air quality remained hazardous on Monday, with an index score of more than 600, according to IQAir, but this was significantly lower than the 1,900 that it touched in some places earlier this month.
A score of 0-50 is considered ‘good’.
Several parts of South Asia are engulfed by a toxic haze each winter as cold air traps dust, emissions, and smoke from farm fires.
Punjab has blamed its particularly toxic air this year on pollution wafting in from India, where northern parts have also been battling hazardous air, and has said it will take the issue up with the neighboring country through its foreign ministry.
India’s Supreme Court on Monday directed the Delhi government to decide by Nov. 25 on imposing a ‘perpetual ban’ on firecrackers, legal news portal Bar and Bench reported.
Firecrackers set off by revellers on Diwali, the Hindu festival of lights that was celebrated on Oct. 31 this year despite a ban, has aggravated the region’s pollution problem.
Pakistan limits outdoor activities, market hours to curb air pollution-related illness
https://arab.news/jcr9u
Pakistan limits outdoor activities, market hours to curb air pollution-related illness
- Punjab government says “unavoidable religious rites” exempt from latest smog-related restrictions
- Several parts of South Asia are engulfed by toxic haze each winter as cold air traps dust, emissions
Pakistan PM orders action against fuel hoarding amid Iran conflict supply fears
- Sharif asks authorities to shut down petrol pumps involved in any attempt to create artificial shortages
- Government says it holds adequate fuel stocks despite shipping risks as Strait of Hormuz tensions rise
ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Friday ordered authorities to take strict action against fuel hoarders and shut down petrol pumps involved in any attempt to create artificial shortages, as anxiety grows over potential supply disruptions from the widening conflict involving Iran.
Sharif issued the directive during a high-level meeting on petroleum supplies, where officials briefed him that Pakistan currently holds sufficient fuel reserves to meet domestic demand despite the volatile regional situation.
The move comes as Pakistan steps up contingency measures following fears of supply disruptions linked to the escalating conflict involving Iran, the United States and Israel.
The concerns stem partly from disruptions in tanker traffic after the Strait of Hormuz — a key global oil chokepoint between Iran and Oman through which much of Pakistan’s imported crude typically transits — was shut following rising hostilities in the Gulf.
“The prime minister directed provincial governments to take strict legal action against hoarders of petroleum products,” Sharif’s office said in a statement after the meeting.
“Any petrol pump involved in the reprehensible practice of creating artificial shortages should be immediately shut down, its license revoked and legal action initiated,” it added.
Earlier this week, Pakistan’s Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (OGRA) allowed oil marketing companies to temporarily regulate supplies to retail outlets to discourage hoarding and maintain stability in fuel distribution.
Sharif instructed the petroleum minister to visit provinces and coordinate with their administrations to develop a strategy for conserving petroleum products and ensuring their uninterrupted supply to the public.
The prime minister further ordered the creation of a digital dashboard to monitor the movement of petroleum products and share real-time data with provincial authorities to improve oversight of fuel transportation and distribution.
