Punjab is still covered with smog, and the Lahore AQI is 824.

The city continues to be the most polluted city in the world based on the air-quality index (AQI), which makes it difficult for residents to breathe.

With 428 AQI readings, the capital of India, New Delhi, is the second most polluted city in the world.

In districts affected by smog, the Punjab government yesterday declared that schools up to the upper secondary level would be closed till November 17.

The districts of Lahore, Sheikhupura, Kasur, Nankana Sahib, Gujranwala, Gujrat, Hafiz Abad, Mandi Bahauddin, Sialkot, Narowal, Faisalabad, Chinniot, Jhang, Toba Tek Singh, Multan, Lodharan, Vehari, and Khanewal nonetheless have closed their schools.

The province is dealing with extreme air pollution levels that have skyrocketed to dangerous levels, impacting public health, particularly for children.

Frequently rated as one of the world’s most polluted cities, Lahore has prompted authorities to take immediate action.

According to Marriyum Aurangzeb, senior provincial minister, haze has been becoming worse for a week since Indian air has been flowing towards Lahore. Without speaking with India, this problem could not be resolved.

“Polluted eastern winds are blowing from India towards Lahore,” stated Jahangir Anwar, secretary of the Environment Protection Agency.

Anwar stated, “This polluted air has contributed to Lahore’s smog and given the AQI reading an extraordinary boost.”

“We have never reached a level of 1,000,” a top environmental protection official told AFP earlier in the interview.

The fog and pollution from low-grade diesel emissions, smoke from seasonal agricultural burning, and winter chilling have been engulfing Lahore for days.

In a report, AFP stated that Lahore’s air pollution levels on Saturday were more than 80 times higher than what the World Health Organization (WHO) considers tolerable.

Before falling to about 300 in the morning, the level of dangerous PM2.5 pollutants—fine particulate matter in the air that causes the most harm to health—peaked at 1,067. The WHO considers anything over 10 to be harmful.