LAHORE: Thick smog continued to blanket Lahore on Thursday, reducing visibility across roads and obscuring landmarks as air pollution reached dangerous levels.

According to the Punjab Environmental Protection Agency, the city’s overall Air Quality Index (AQI) stood at 312 at 11:00 am local time, classified as “very unhealthy.” Readings ranged from 212 near the Wagha Border to 449 in Kahna Nau, while international monitoring service IQAir recorded levels between 195 and 364 throughout the day.

At a hospital in Lahore, patients sought medical attention for breathing difficulties, eye irritation and other smog-related health problems. Residents complained of worsening health conditions, with one heart patient who had undergone bypass surgery reporting breathing difficulties and eye infections.

“Yes, I came here for a check-up because I am a heart patient, I am also diabetic, and I have had a bypass,” Ahmed Abubakar told Reuters. “In the smog we get this problem with our breathing and our eyes get infected, which is why we come here for a check-up.”

Another resident called for stricter action against smoke-emitting vehicles and crop residue burning, saying the polluted air had caused nasal congestion, throat problems and burning eyes.

Mohammad Niaz Butt urged the government to ban vehicles that emit smoke to curb pollution and smog.

“Here they just go through formalities, a few vehicles are shown for the camera, but the smoke keeps increasing,” Butt said. “Now the crops have been harvested. They [authorities] say crop residue must not be burned, but they are burning it, and nothing is being done about it.”

A doctor at the hospital warned that smog-related health problems were increasing alongside pollution levels. He said Lahore’s daily AQI readings usually ranged between 200 and 300 but could occasionally exceed 1,000, highlighting the severity of the city’s air pollution and the growing health risks for residents, particularly those with existing medical conditions.