Lahore Has The Worst Air Quality in The World: IQAir

Lahore has been declared the city with the worst air quality in the world on Monday by IQAir, a Swiss air quality technology company.

At the time of writing, Lahore recorded a particulate matter (PM 2.5) rating of 372 that categorizes air quality of the provincial capital as “hazardous”. Whereas, the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) considers air quality with PM 2.5 under 50 as “healthy”.

Moreover, the concentration of PM 2.5 particulates in Lahore stood at 322.7 micrograms/cubic meter, which is 32.2 times above the WHO acceptable air quality guideline value.

PM 2.5 refers to atmospheric particles that have a diameter of less than 2.5 micrometers and can only be viewed through an electron microscope. Since PM 2.5 particles are extremely lightweight, they tend to hang in the air longer than other heavier particles.

As a result, human beings are more susceptible to inhaling these particles through the nose and throat. These particles can cause diseases from cancer to stroke and from cardiovascular diseases to acute respiratory infections.

Lahore is followed by Zagreb (Croatia), Ulaanbaatar (Mongolia), Delhi (India), and Mumbai (India) as the cities with the worst air quality after Lahore.

Here are the 10 cities with the worst air quality in the world right now.

Lahore has had extremely poor air quality for years, with the provincial capital regularly featuring in the list of the top 10 cities with the worst air quality in the world.

Earlier this year, a report by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) had identified the pollution emitting from transport and industrial sectors coupled with crop burning as the major sources of smog in the provincial capital during winters.

To tackle smog this time around, the Punjab government imposed section 144 under which action will be taken against those causing air and pollution through the burning of crop stubble, industrial waste, and vehicular emissions.



Get Alerts

Follow ProPakistani to get latest news and updates.


ProPakistani Community

Join the groups below to get latest news and updates.



>