Lahore | Pakistan

The persistent smog crisis continues to blanket South Asia, with Lahore and New Delhi recording dangerously high air pollution levels, posing severe health risks to millions of residents across the region.

Senior PTI leader and former foreign minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi was hospitalised at the Pakistan Kidney and Liver Institute in Lahore for gallbladder stone complications, his daughter stated on Friday. Shah Mahmood has been indicted in multiple cases pertaining to the May 9, 2023 riots and has remained behind bars since August 2023. In July 2024, the PTI leader was indicted by a Lahore anti-terrorism court in a case registered by the Shadman police over allegedly attacking and burning the police station. Meher Bano Qureshi took to X today to announce that the PTI leader was undergoing baseline tests for the stones, which he had “lived with … for years”. “In 2023, while incarcerated in Adiala Jail, doctors had advised surgery after his condition deteriorated. He chose not to undergo any procedures, then unwilling to do so while in solitary confinement,” she wrote. “Since then, the stones have increased in size and surgery is now unavoidable. We await the doctors’ final report and a confirmed date for the op...

A Lahore court on Friday extended the physical remand of six National Cyber Crime Investigation Agency (NCCIA) officials by another three days in a case pertaining to the alleged misuse of authority, extortion of money, and acceptance of bribes. The first information report (FIR) of the case was registered with the FIA Anti-Corruption Circle Lahore on the complaint of Aroob Jatoi, the wife of YouTuber Saadur Rehman alias Ducky Bhai, who has been arrested in a case pertaining to promoting gambling apps on social media. The FIR was registered against a total of nine individuals, including eight NCCIA officials. Among them, the six remanded in the FIA custody were said to be missing for several days before the FIA announced their arrest on Monday. Lahore NCCIA’s Additional Director Sarfraz Chaudhry, Lahore NCCIA Deputy Director (acting in-charge) Zawar Ahmad, Lahore NCCIA Sub-Inspector Ali Raza, Lahore NCCIA Assistant Director Shoaib Riaz, Lahore NCCIA Sub-Inspector Yasir Ramzan and Lahore NCCIA Assistant Direct...

Lahore continued to rank as the most polluted city in the world in terms of air quality, global monitor IQAir said on Wednesday. A day ago, the city’s Air Quality Index (AQI) reached a severe peak of 422 but dropped to 341 today — still categorised as “hazardous” — keeping it at the top of the list of cities with the poorest air quality. Behind the Punjab capital in the rankings were New Delhi with an AQI score of 232, Beijing at 222, Kinshasa and Kathmandu at 155 each, and Karachi at 140. The Punjab government has taken notice of the situation and raised a high alert, including revising school timings across the province to begin at 8:35am. In response to the crisis, the Lahore Waste Management Company (LWMC) has also launched a large-scale anti-smog operation, deploying 16 mechanical washers, 50 regular washers, and 400 workers for road washing and water sprinkling. Meanwhile, Punjab Senior Minister Marriyum Aurangzeb, in a statement, praised the efforts of Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz in handling the...

At least six suspects were killed in four separate encounters with the Crime Control Department (CCD) in different locations of Lahore late on Monday, the CCD said on Tuesday. Earlier this year, the Punjab government launched the CCD with a mandate to tackle organised crime, terrorism, and high-profile criminal gangs. Recently, the body has carried out a range of encounters. Officials have publicly praised the department for its successes, claiming it has “significantly reduced street crime and targeted major criminal figures.” As per a statement issued by the department’s spokesperson today, “CCD teams conducted four different encounters in Lahore’s Nishtar Colony, Green Town, Harbanspura, and Ring Road, where six suspects were killed.” In the first instance, in Nishtar Colony, the CCD team came under attack while they were out to arrest the suspects, the statement said. “An exchange of fire ensued, leaving two suspects dead by their associates’ fire,” the CCD said, adding that the “deceased had been involve...

Lahore once again ranked as the world’s most polluted city, recording an alarming Air Quality Index (AQI) of 308, as smog continued to blanket Punjab and other parts of the country.

• Citywide AQI hits 412; PM2.5 concentrations far above safe limits • Citizens urged to wear masks, avoid unnecessary outdoor activity • PDMA says smog intensity expected to rise from Nov to mid-Dec • Govt imposes blanket ban on stubble, solid waste, plastic burning LAHORE: Lahore has ranked as the world’s most polluted city for the past three days, with air quality plummeting to hazardous levels as smog blanketed the city and the overall Air Quality Index (AQI) hitting 412, prompting health warnings and a province-wide crackdown on pollution sources. Data revealed that Lower Mall was the worst-affected neighbourhood, with an AQI of 680, followed by Iqbal Town (577), Syed Maratib Ali Road (543), Shadman (507), the Punjab University area (506), and Shalimar (495). Environmental experts have urged residents to avoid unnecessary outdoor activity, particularly in the morning and evening, and to wear masks when outside. PM2.5 concentrations in Lahore’s air are multiple times above global safety thresholds, raising...

LAHORE - The Pakistan Railways has decided to remove engineering obstacles between Lahore and Rawalpindi within a month, a move aimed at reducing travel time for passengers.

The Pakistan Airports Authority (PAA) on Saturday announced changes in certain routes for the Karachi and Lahore flight regions for the upcoming week to ensure “continued safety and effective management of air traffic”. “​The restrictions are effective from Tuesday, October 28, 2025, at 5:01am Pakistan Standard Time (PKT) and will remain in place until Wednesday, October 29, 2025, at 9am PKT,” said a NOTAM (notice to airmen) issued by the PAA today. ​ “This is a routine operational safety matter. The measure is being implemented for ‘operational reasons’ to ensure the continued safety and effective management of air traffic.” In a separate development, open source tracker Damien Symon, also quoted by Reuters in earlier news reports, said Indian aviation authorities issued a NOTAM a day earlier “possibly for a military exercise/weapons test as India prepares for its Tri-Services Exercise across the border”. The open source tracker stated that India had also issued a NOTAM for a tri-services exercise along its ...

Lahore continued to experience dry and hazy weather on Saturday as the Met Office warned that persistent dry conditions and rising air pollution were likely to keep the city and other districts of eastern Punjab under the grip of smog. It added that continental air was prevailing over most parts of the country, bringing generally dry weather, while hilly areas were expected to remain cold during morning and night hours. Citizens were advised to take precautionary measures against the prevailing smog. Lahore was declared the world’s most polluted city earlier this week as a hazardous blanket of smog enveloped the metropolis, prompting authorities to issue a severe public health warning. Along with Karachi, the city was among the top five most polluted cities in terms of air quality, according to monitoring platform IQAir. Smog is set to intensify across Lahore and other parts of Punjab due to a combination of local emissions and pollutants carried by low-speed winds from India, following Diwali celebrations, a...

Lahore has once again ranked as the most polluted city in the world, with Karachi also making the list at fourth place, according to the latest data from the global air quality monitor IQAir.

Imperial College London has refuted the Punjab government’s claims that it is opening a campus at the Nawaz Sharif IT City in Lahore, saying that all of its campuses are based in the United Kingdom (UK). On October 18, the PML-N had posted on its official X account about a meeting chaired by Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz. The post said that a campus of Imperial College London would open at the Nawaz Sharif IT City, adding that the foundation stone would be laid in November. “A modern 300-bed hospital will also be built within the college campus,” it said. In a separate post on X, Punjab Senior Minister Marriyum Aurangzeb had also made a similar statement about the meeting chaired by the chief minister. “A campus of Imperial College London will be established in the Nawaz Sharif IT City which will also include a state-of-the-art 300-bed hospital and its foundation stone will be laid in November,” she had said. The post has since been deleted. Screenshot of post made by Punjab Senior Minister Marriyum Aura...

Lahore and Karachi were among the top five most polluted cities in terms of air quality on Tuesday, according to monitoring platform IQAir. In past few years, air pollution has become one of the most pressing public health and environmental crises facing Pakistan. Various cities of the country, most notably Lahore, deal with smog especially in the winter months. The phenomenon is attributed mainly to industrial emissions, vehicular pollution, stubble burning and air movement. Ranked the world’s third most polluted city yesterday, Lahore rose to the second spot today with an air quality index (AQI) reading of 234 at 11am, categorised as “very unhealthy”. The provincial capital trailed just behind New Delhi, which had an “hazardous” AQI of 489. Karachi recorded an AQI of 182 at 11am, falling in the “unhealthy” range and just barely behind Kuwait’s capital at 183. India’s Mumbai came in at fifth with an AQI of 169. World’s 10 most polluted cities as ranked by IQAir, as of 11am on Oct 21, 2025. — screngrab via IQ...

Lahore’s air quality is expected to deteriorate sharply on Tuesday as smog drifts in from India’s capital, Delhi, which recorded a “hazardous” Air Quality Index (AQI) of 535 at 8:40 am, according to Swiss monitoring firm IQAir.

Lahore was ranked the second most polluted city in the world in terms of air quality on Sunday, according to air quality monitoring platform IQAir. The Air Quality Index (AQI) is a measure of the concentration of various pollutants in the air, such as fine particulate matter (PM2.5), coarse particulate matter (PM10) and nitrogen dioxide (NO2), and ozone (O3). Any IQAir AQI ranking above 150 is considered “unhealthy” and above 200 is considered “very unhealthy”. The AQI reading for Lahore stood at a very unhealthy 189; it was just beaten by Delhi, which registered a reading of 212 around 7:30pm. Additionally, levels of the pollutant PM2.5 were measured at 109 microgrammes per cubic metre of air (μg/m³), 21.8 times higher than the World Health Organisation’s annual PM2.5 guidelines. PM2.5 particles are floating particulate matter in the air measuring 2.5 micrometres in diameter or less, according to IQAir. PM2.5 is so small that it can be absorbed into the bloodstream upon inhalation. IQAir recommended on its w...

In a delightful development for children and families, Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz Sharif has brought back giraffes to Lahore after an eight-year absence.

LAHORE/RY KHAN - A fugitive wanted by Lahore police was killed by gunfire from his own accomplices during an alleged encounter near Kot Sabzal police station, Rahim Yar Khan.

ISLAMABAD: The Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) has approved financing of $235 million for the Lahore Water and Wastewater Management Project. This funding aims to ensure a sustainable supply of safe water and alleviate the environmental damage caused by untreated sewage discharge in the city. The loan, approved by the Beijing-based institution on Thursday, will also support the Lahore Water and Sanitation Agency (LWASA) in improving its institutional capacity, enabling it to provide better services to the residents of Lahore while becoming a financially sustainable entity. Lahore faces a dual challenge of inadequate clean water and untreated wastewater overflow, both of which require urgent attention from the provincial government. The AIIB financing will be directed towards addressing these issues in a coordinated manner. The Punjab government had requested the AIIB’s support for the construction of infrastructure to divert water from the nearby Banbawala Ravi Bedian Depalpur (BRBD) Canal, as wel...

Tehreek-i-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP) supporters reached Lahore’s Shahdara bridge late on Friday night as the religious party attempted to march towards Islamabad and hold an anti-Israeli demonstration outside the US embassy. A spokesperson for the party told Dawn.com that they have stopped the march for the night. A Dawn.com correspondent in Lahore reported earlier on Friday evening that the protesters were trying to remove obstacles at the city’s Chauburji Chowk and march ahead. A statement by Edhi spokesperson Younis Bhatti said several policemen had been injured in clashes with TLP protesters. The statement added that Edhi volunteers moved the injured personnel to various hospitals in the city. Meanwhile, TLP spokesperson Usman Naushahi told Dawn.com that one of the protesters had died and 22 were injured. Ahead of the march, without naming the TLP, the US embassy in Islamabad posted on social media platform X that “the US consulates general in Lahore, Karachi, and Peshawar are monitoring planned protest activ...

Air pollution in the provincial capital has reached a critical level, with Lahore now ranked as the second most polluted city in the world.