Punjab, particularly the city of Lahore, has been grappling with a severe smog crisis since last month, with thick and toxic clouds now visible from space through striking satellite imagery. According to CNN, satellite images from NASA’s Worldview show that the smog extends beyond Pakistan, also enveloping northern India.
The cities of Lahore and Multan have been heavily blanketed by the dark haze, obscuring streets and buildings from view. NASA’s satellite images clearly depict both Lahore and New Delhi shrouded in thick smog, with no visible green cover.
On Tuesday, the Swiss air quality technology company IQAir reported that Lahore had the most polluted air in the world. The IQAir Air Quality Index (AQI) ranked Lahore at the top, with New Delhi, India, and Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo, following in second and third places, respectively. The AQI list labeled Lahore’s air quality as “very hazardous.”
In parallel, the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) issued a warning about the severe risks posed by the highly polluted air in Punjab, affecting more than 11 million children under the age of five. UNICEF reported that hundreds of people, including dozens of children, have been hospitalized in the hardest-hit cities, with pollution levels so severe that they are visible from space.
“As smog continues to persist in Punjab province, I am extremely concerned about the well-being of young children who are forced to breathe polluted, toxic air,” said Abdullah Fadil, Pakistan’s UNICEF representative, in a statement issued in Islamabad.
The pollution crisis has forced authorities in Pakistan to close schools and public spaces, as the smog poses a significant health threat to tens of millions of people. Each winter, pollution in the region intensifies, with smog blanketing the atmosphere due to a combination of factors, including farmers burning agricultural waste, coal-fired power plants, traffic, and windless days.
Officials in Lahore have described this season as unprecedented, despite the fact that major South Asian cities suffer from poisonous smog each year.
