LAHORE:Speakers and public health experts at an awareness seminar on smog held at Institute of Public Health (IPH) said global warming is a big issue and due to this global warming, environmental pollution and smog problems are increasing day by day, urging the stakeholders to take steps to face global warming challenges in future.
They were of the view that society must be developed on scientific basis instead of traditions so that people should understand issues concerning to their health. Industrial revolution, smoke from brick kilns, burning of remaining of crops and solid waste and smoke produced by the vehicles on roads are the basic causes of producing smog. An awareness campaign at mass level is needed to overcome this issue, they said and declared smog a bigger issue than dengue. The speakers of the seminar were included Chairman Board of Management (BOM) IPH, Khalid Maqbool, Member Health and Nutrition P&D Department Dr Suhail Saqlain, Dean IPH Prof Dr Zarfishan Tahir and other public health experts from environment department. Chairman Task Force P&D Sardar Awais Dareshak, Chief Health P&D Salim Masih, officers from Health department, PITB and other departments concerned were present.
Lt-Gen (Retd) Khalid Maqbool said poor and developing countries have not enough resources and technology to fight the issues produced by the global warming. He said all the stakeholders including Institute of Public Health should prepare themselves and should come up with long term strategy / policy to overcome these challenges. He said behavioural changes in people lives is the need of hour and ‘we should adopt alternate sources of energy like solar energy and tree plantation at mass level to safe our environment for future generation.’
Member Health P&D Dr Suhail Saqlain was of the view that industrial revolution, rapid urbanisation, smoke produced by the unfit vehicles, burning of agriculture crops and solid waste are causes of smog which badly affect human health and their abilities. Dean IPH Dr Zarfishan Tahir urged that every individual should play its role in controlling smog. Other public health experts urged the public to take preventive measure against smog.