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moke lowering down from chimney-pots, making a soft black drizzle, with flakes of soot in it as big as full-grown snowflakes — gone into mourning, one might imagine, for the death of the sun.”
This haunting image from Charles Dickens’s Bleak House described London during the Industrial Revolution. It could just as easily describe Pakistan’s metropolitan cities in autumn where, as the leaves fall, so does the air quality.
For years, this has been the fate of all the major cities. In October and November, the air grows thick with toxins, hospitals fill with patients coughing their lungs out and there’s a countrywide commotion over smog. When spring arrives, the haze lifts somewhat and the nation slips back into collective amnesia. It’s a script on repeat, except that with each passing year, the characters grow weaker and the writers seem less interested in rewriting their fates than putting up a show.
For a whole decade now, Lahore has consistently ranked at the top of the list for the worst air quality, surpassing all other cities in Pakistan, and, on some days, the world. If air pollution had seemed like a Lahore problem, last year, things took a turn for the worse as Multan, the biggest city in the southern part of the province, came close.
The air-quality index (AQI) declares a value of 300 or above hazardous. In November 2024, Lahore and Multan reported numbers above 2,000. Multan’s air quality did not deteriorate suddenly. It had been choking all along but until last year, the city did not have air quality monitors. Even Islamabad, once known for cleaner air, came to be engulfed in a blanket of toxic air.
The origins
Every winter, South Asia welcomes a blanket of intense pollution. This is due to the inversion of temperature during winter, which entraps emissions, dust and smoke in the atmosphere. The Punjab has been worst hit due to environmentally hazardous practices associated with sectoral emissions from transportation, industry and crop and waste burning.
While polluted winds from India too contribute to poor air quality, the transport sector is now regarded as the biggest contributor to hazardous emissions in the province. Moreover, crop waste is burned all across the. Although the government has sought to discourage these practices, enforcement has been lax. The same can be said about other major emission contributors, namely, industries and power.
The toll
Smog is more than just an eyesore. It is associated with several health hazards, ranging from respiratory diseases such as asthma and bronchitis to cardiovascular diseases, including strokes. When the inhaled air is poisonous, it reduces people’s life expectancy. According to the University of Chicago’s Air Quality Life Index, PM 2.5 particulate air pollution shortens the average Pakistani resident’s life expectancy by 3.9 years. For some of the most polluted cities of Pakistan - Lahore, Sheikhupura, Kasur and Peshawar - the air pollution reduces the life expectancy of residents by almost 7 years.
The smog also adds a burden on an already overstretched health system. The policymakers also worry about the economic losses associated with smog - business closures, transportation constraints and lowered labour productivity. According to the Health Department, in October and November last year, hospitals and clinics in the Punjab received close to 2 million patients with respiratory issues and eye irritation caused by smog. Hospitals had to set up special counters to manage the influx. Thousands of patients were admitted on a single day in Lahore alone.
Policy and implementation
Historically, Pakistan has taken a reactive rather than proactive approach to disasters like floods and smog.
Last year, cloud seeding was attempted. This year, anti-smog machines are spraying mist into the air to settle pollutants. But research from China in 2023, carried out by European Geo Sciences Unit, showed that such mist cannons can actually worsen air quality. Such responses are not just ineffective, they’re actively harmful. They divert attention and resources from real solutions like emission regulation, clean energy transitions and public transportation improvements. Meanwhile, the government continues to close schools and restrict outdoor activity when pollution peaks. These are exposure mitigation measures, not pollution-control strategies.
To its credit, the government has also introduced some structural reforms like the adoption of zig-zag kilns to reduce industrial emissions. The Vehicle Emissions Testing campaign and the installation of 100 air quality monitors across the province also deserve praise. Last year, the government also published a Smog Mitigation Roadmap (2024–2025) and the Punjab Clean Air Action Policy. Its continuing failure to control smog therefore reflects not a lack of ideas, but a lack of evidence-based interventions and follow-through.
There is still hope
While the situation seems dire, there are numerous cases around the world where polluted cities have managed to fight their smog.
Lessons from London
In the mid-19th Century, following the Industrial Revolution, smog became a common sight in large British cities during winter. In the cold December of 1952, London was covered in a thick layer of smog that lasted five days. The smog was caused by large amounts of sulfur dioxide and smoke in the air, produced by coal combustion in fireplaces, power stations and industrial furnaces. More than 10,000 people died on account of this smog. In 1956, the parliament passed the Clean Air Act, legislating measures to reduce the emission of pollutants and a move towards cleaner fuels.
So, smog isn’t a recent phenomenon; it can be deadly; and it is reversible. Today, London has an AQI of less than 20.
Beijing’s transformation
A decade ago, Beijing was notorious for its smog problem. The issue was so severe that in 2013, it inspired the term “air-pocalypse.” The Guardian described the experience as a “rehearsal for life on an inhospitable planet.” For context, Beijing’s peak AQI in 2013 was a third of the peak reported from Lahore and Multan last year.
The following year, Beijing announced a five-year plan to mitigate air pollution. These included tightening emissions standards, limiting car ownership, encouraging electric vehicles and enhancing bike-sharing. It also restricted coal use, improved public transit and expanded green spaces. Funding for air quality improvement increased six-fold in five years. Local authorities introduced a city-wide licence plate lottery for new fossil-fuel cars, making plates easier to obtain for electric vehicles, and encouraging a shift to cleaner transportation.
Fast forward to 2024 and while other countries in the region have witnessed a dramatic increase in smog levels, Beijing’s particle pollution has fallen by 60 percent.
The way forward
First and foremost, Pakistan must acknowledge that its smog issue is a national emergency. The country needs to act quickly. Like all emergencies, it demands an integrated approach with collaboration between layers of government across the country. It also demands action rooted in evidence. There is a need to stop treating smog as an anomaly and start treating it as evidence of a year-round governance failure. This means shifting from short-term visible fixes to sustained, systemic reform.
In the short term, public health should be a priority. Schools and non-essential workplaces in all major cities should temporarily go remote to minimise commute and reduce vehicular emissions. Restrictions on high-emission vehicles and polluting industries are also essential to reduce pollution levels. Public awareness campaigns should run using accessible media such as text messages and call-waiting ringtones, encouraging people to stay indoors and wear N95 or K95 masks. Meanwhile, citizens should keep the conversation and struggle around smog alive and not let anyone fall into complacency, even on days when the sky is clear.
In the coming months, citizens require an advanced air quality data regime and stronger accountability. Expansion is needed for both the coverage and density of air quality monitors. A comprehensive data regime is essential not just for transparency, but also for diagnosing sources, enforcing accountability and guiding targeted interventions. Construction sites must be required to implement dust suppression measures. Crop burning should be addressed not through punishment alone, but also through viable, affordable alternatives like subsidised Happy Seeders and incentives for sustainable, climate-smart farming practices. Doctors should be trained to recognise and advise on health issues associated with smog. For new vehicles, emissions standards should be defined and strictly enforced, with incentives to replace high-emission vehicles.
In the long run, cutting emissions is paramount. Expanding public transportation networks, such as buses and developing cycling infrastructure will encourage travel with low per capita emissions. Transitioning to clean energy sources such as solar energy will help reduce reliance on coal and other polluting fuels. Vehicle emission standards should evolve with strict limits and incentives for electric vehicles.
Progress will require political will. The current incentive structure rewards inaction and performative gestures. That must change. Air pollution doesn’t stop at regional boundaries; neither should accountability. When it comes to clean air, no one is safe unless everyone is safe.
Faaiz Gilani is an assistant consultant for climate policy and finance at Oxford Policy Management
Aamna Asghar is a development professional working on climate resilience, institutional capacity and socioeconomic inclusion.