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November 7, 2026

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Smoke and haze over Pakistan and northern India, seen from space
Pakistan

Punjab Smog Crisis: Lahore AQI Hits 530 and Multan 719 as Hospitals Fill With Patients

Faizan Altaf

Thick, grey smog has settled over Punjab, and the air in its biggest cities is now among the most polluted in the world. Lahore’s air quality index (AQI) has reached 530, Multan has recorded an alarming 719, and hospitals are filling up with people struggling to breathe.

In Rawalpindi alone, 2,961 patients suffering from smog-related illness visited the city’s three allied hospitals in just 48 hours, according to The Express Tribune. Most of them were elderly men and women. Doctors are warning that the worst may still be ahead: no rain is expected for the next three days, and without rain the pollution is likely to get worse, not better.

This is Punjab’s smog season at its most dangerous. Here is what is happening, why it is happening, and how to protect yourself and your family.

How bad is the air? The numbers, city by city

The air quality index measures how polluted the air is. On the standard scale, 0 to 50 is good, 51 to 100 is moderate, 101 to 150 is unhealthy for sensitive groups, 151 to 200 is unhealthy for everyone, 201 to 300 is very unhealthy, and anything above 300 is classed as hazardous. The scale itself tops out at 500.

Here are the latest readings reported on Saturday, 7 November, by The Express Tribune, based on figures from the Environmental Protection and Climate Change Department and air quality index applications:

  • Multan: 719 — far beyond the top of the scale
  • Jhang: 678
  • Gujranwala: 600 to 660
  • Lahore: 530
  • Faisalabad: 371
  • Islamabad: 187
  • Rawalpindi: 179
  • Murree: 123

Every one of these readings is above the level considered safe. Even Murree, the hill station known as the Queen of the Hills, recorded 123, which is unhealthy for sensitive groups. In Lahore, Multan, Jhang and Gujranwala, the air is not just unhealthy — it is hazardous, several times worse than the level at which health experts say everyone should stay indoors.

The Express Tribune reports that Lahore, Multan, Jhang and Gujranwala have been included among the world’s most polluted cities. Lahore has topped the world’s pollution charts several times in recent weeks. On Monday, 2 November, the city’s AQI reached 535 at 8am, according to the international air quality monitor IQAir.

Hospitals are filling up

The pollution is not just a number on a screen. It is showing up in hospital waiting rooms across Punjab.

In Rawalpindi, 2,961 patients with diseases linked to smog and air pollution visited the outpatient departments and emergency wards of the city’s three allied hospitals during the past 48 hours, The Express Tribune reported. The patients were suffering from respiratory diseases, asthma, sore throats, eye irritation, colds and coughs. A majority of them were elderly men and women, who are among the most vulnerable to bad air.

Lahore’s hospitals have been under even heavier pressure. More than 35,000 patients with respiratory and flu-like symptoms visited the city’s six major government hospitals during the past week, Pakistan Today reported on 3 November.

The pattern is familiar to doctors in Punjab. Every winter, when the smog season arrives, hospitals see a sharp rise in breathing problems, chest infections, asthma attacks and eye complaints. Children, older people and anyone who already has a breathing condition such as asthma are hit hardest.

Medical experts and the health department have issued guidelines in view of the worsening smog, advising people to wear masks regularly. They have warned that polluted air is proving dangerous for children and for patients suffering from respiratory diseases, and that they should not be allowed to go outdoors unnecessarily.

Why is the smog so bad right now?

Smog is not one thing. It is a mix of smoke, dust and tiny chemical particles that hang in the air. In Punjab it gets worst in late autumn and winter, and this year several factors have come together at the same time.

The first is the weather. Falling temperatures since the start of November have created what scientists call a temperature inversion. Normally, warm air near the ground rises and carries pollution away. During an inversion, a layer of warmer air sits above colder air at ground level, acting like a lid. The smoke and dust cannot escape, so they stay trapped close to the ground where people breathe.

Abdullah Nayyar Sheikh, director general of Punjab’s Environment Protection Department, told Reuters that the inversion, combined with wind speeds that had been “extremely low” for days, was behind the current crisis. At 5am on Wednesday, 4 November, Lahore’s wind speed was just 0.3 metres per second — close to dead calm — with humidity at 86 percent.

The second factor is the long dry spell. Rain washes dust and smoke out of the air. Pakistan’s plains have now gone more than two weeks without meaningful rain, and the Pakistan Meteorological Department’s outlook shows dry weather continuing. The Express Tribune reports that if there is no rainfall during the next three days — Saturday, Sunday and Monday — the air quality readings are likely to deteriorate further.

The third factor is the season itself. The National Disaster Management Authority’s seasonal outlook expects the smog risk to rise from mid-November into December, when nights grow colder and the inversions get stronger. In other words, the worst weeks of the smog season may still be ahead.

A satellite image taken on 1 November by the European Union’s Copernicus Sentinel-3 satellite shows the scale of the problem from space: a grey-white veil of smoke and haze stretching across the plain from the area around Lahore to New Delhi.

What is making the air so dirty?

The pollution comes from many sources, and most of them are close to home. According to the Environmental Protection Department in Rawalpindi, the main causes of the rising air pollution are:

  • Brick kilns, which burn coal and other fuels around the clock
  • Stone-crushing machines and construction dust
  • Smoke-emitting vehicles, which the department described as among the most dangerous sources of pollution
  • Burning of crop residue by farmers clearing their fields after harvest
  • Extracting black oil by burning old tyres, a practice that releases thick, toxic smoke
  • Smoke from factories, industrial units and large bakeries

The province’s Environment Protection Department lists transport emissions, industry, brick kilns, crop burning, construction dust and waste burning as the main contributors. The finest particles, which do the most damage to lungs, come largely from burning things — fuel, crops, waste and tyres.

Gujranwala, Faisalabad and Jhang are industrial cities, which helps explain why their readings are so high. But the problem is region-wide: five major cities of Punjab, including the twin cities of Rawalpindi and Islamabad, have all reached dangerous levels of smog and air pollution.

What the government is doing

The authorities have announced a crackdown. Deputy Commissioner Nadeem Nasir has issued strict orders for the immediate registration of cases against those setting fire to garbage, old tyres, scrap material and crop residue. He has also ordered the bulldozing of all brick kilns operating without environment-friendly technology.

A major crackdown against smoke-emitting vehicles, factories, industrial units and brick kilns is being launched from Saturday, The Express Tribune reported. The province has already been fining and sealing polluters, with police arresting violators and the Environment Protection Department sealing industrial units.

The provincial government has also tried a more visible response. This week it launched “Chamkta Lahore” (Shining Lahore), a cleanliness and dust-suppression campaign that sends out 16 road-washing machines, 46 rickshaw-mounted footpath washers and 10 rickshaw-mounted mist guns across 100 major roads and markets, with a target of washing 100 kilometres of road a day. Road washing tackles dust, but it is only one source among many.

On schools, the picture is mixed. Government schools have been operating under revised winter timings since 16 October, starting at 8:45am so that children avoid the worst of the morning pollution. But private schools in Lahore have continued on their regular schedules, despite the hazardous air. As of Wednesday, 4 November, no smog-related closure of schools or offices had been ordered. Such a step requires an order from the Environment Protection Department and a notification from the School Education Department. Schools were told last month to halt outdoor activities when readings are high.

Punjab Senior Minister Marriyum Aurangzeb has said Lahore’s average AQI stood at 180.5 in October, and the government says smog this November is lower than two years ago. There is some truth in that: in November 2024, readings at some Lahore monitors exceeded 1,000, and the government shut schools and ordered lockdowns in several cities. But this week’s levels are still several times the hazardous threshold, and hospitals are already full.

How to protect yourself and your family

The health department and medical experts have issued clear advice for the smog season. The most important steps are simple:

  • Wear a mask whenever you go outside, and wear it properly, covering your nose and mouth.
  • Stay indoors as much as possible, especially in the morning and evening, when pollution is at its worst. Keep doors and windows closed during those hours to stop polluted air entering your home.
  • Keep children and people with breathing problems indoors. Children and patients suffering from respiratory diseases should not be allowed to go outdoors unnecessarily.
  • Look after your eyes. To avoid eye irritation, wash your eyes with clean water, and use eye drops only on the advice of a doctor.
  • Avoid exercise outdoors while the air is hazardous. A morning walk or run in smog does more harm than good.
  • Watch for warning signs. If you or a family member develops a persistent cough, wheezing, breathlessness or chest pain, seek medical help promptly. Older people and those with asthma should keep their medicines close at hand.

For a fuller guide to protecting your health during Lahore’s smog season, see our earlier article: Lahore smog season: how to protect your health

The dry weather that is trapping the smog is also affecting the rest of the country. Read our report on the week ahead: Pakistan stays dry into November as the first snow falls on the northern mountains

A problem that crosses borders

Punjab’s smog does not stop at provincial or national borders. The same haze that covers Lahore also covers Delhi, just across the border in India, where air pollution has also surged back ahead of Diwali. Read our report: Delhi’s toxic winter air is back as pollution soars ahead of Diwali

The two Punjabs — one in Pakistan, one in India — share the same plain, the same harvest season and the same winter weather. Smoke from crop burning, vehicles and industry drifts across the border in both directions, which is why the problem is so hard for either side to solve alone.

Frequently asked questions

What is AQI?

AQI stands for air quality index. It is a single number that sums up how polluted the air is. On the standard scale, 0 to 50 is good, 51 to 100 is moderate, 101 to 150 is unhealthy for sensitive groups, 151 to 200 is unhealthy, 201 to 300 is very unhealthy, and anything above 300 is hazardous. The scale tops out at 500.

Which city in Punjab has the worst air right now?

Multan, with an AQI of 719, followed by Jhang at 678 and Gujranwala at 600 to 660. Lahore recorded 530. All four cities are among the most polluted in the world at present.

Is it safe to go outside in Lahore today?

Health experts advise against unnecessary outdoor activity while the AQI is above 300. If you must go out, wear a mask, and keep children, older people and anyone with a breathing condition indoors.

Will the smog clear soon?

Probably not on its own. No rain is expected for the next three days, and the National Disaster Management Authority expects the smog risk to rise from mid-November into December as nights get colder. Rain is the main thing that clears the air quickly.

What causes Punjab’s smog?

A mix of sources: brick kilns, smoke-emitting vehicles, factories, construction dust, burning of crop residue and waste, and the burning of old tyres to extract black oil. Cold, calm winter weather then traps all of it close to the ground.

Are schools closed because of smog?

Not at present. Government schools are on revised winter timings, starting at 8:45am, but private schools in Lahore are still operating on regular schedules. As of Wednesday, 4 November, no smog-related closure of schools or offices had been ordered.

Conclusion

Punjab’s smog crisis is not a one-day event. It is the result of weeks of dry, still weather, years of unchecked pollution from vehicles, kilns, factories and burning, and a winter season that traps it all close to the ground.

The numbers tell the story plainly: Multan at 719, Lahore at 530, and nearly 3,000 people seeking hospital treatment in Rawalpindi in two days. The government’s crackdown on polluters and its road-washing campaign may help at the edges, but the air will not clear properly until it rains — and no rain is forecast for the next three days.

Until then, the best protection is the simplest: stay indoors when you can, wear a mask when you cannot, and keep children, older relatives and anyone with breathing problems out of the smog. The air may be out of our hands, but how much of it we breathe is not entirely.

Sources

This article is for general information and education only. It is not legal or financial advice.

Faizan Altaf

Faizan Altaf is the founder and author of findivoza.com, a news blog covering world, Pakistan, business, technology, health and sport in plain English. He writes for general readers who want clear, trustworthy news without jargon. His work focuses on explaining what happened, why it matters, and what to watch next.

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