LAHORE: Punjab has stepped up its campaign against air pollution ahead of the winter smog season. Traffic police have fined more than 3,000 smoke-emitting vehicles in two weeks, and the Environment Department has demolished a polluting kiln in Lahore. The measures coincided with the International Day for the Preservation of the Ozone Layer, when Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz outlined her government’s environmental record.
DIG Traffic Punjab Muhammad Waqas Nazir has ordered strict action across the province against vehicles that emit smoke and pollute the environment.
According to the traffic police spokesperson, more than 3,000 smoke-emitting vehicles were issued challan tickets in the past two weeks. The fitness certificates of more than nine vehicles and the route permits of more than six polluting vehicles were suspended.
FIRs were registered against 14 smoke-emitting vehicles and more than 1,800 vehicles were impounded. This month, heavy fines were also imposed on more than 1,100 tractor trolleys carrying sand and soil without tarpaulin covers, which spread dust on roads.
Waqas Nazir urged citizens to keep their vehicles properly maintained. He told traffic officers to work actively to make Punjab smog-free and to enforce government instructions strictly. Toxic vehicle exhaust causes disease and pollution, he said, and must be controlled to protect the environment.
In Lahore, a major operation against polluting kilns was led by Director General Environment Abdullah Nayyar Sheikh, with Deputy Director Ali Ijaz and field teams. Nine kilns were inspected for compliance with environmental laws and emission standards.
M/s Khalid Pottery Kiln, on Soay Asal Road off Ferozepur Road, was found violating environmental laws and was demolished on the spot under the DG’s supervision. Sheikh said a zero-tolerance policy is in force against units that cause air pollution.
Vehicle emissions and industrial units, including brick and pottery kilns, are among the main contributors to Lahore’s poor air quality. A recent study found that fossil fuels contribute more than twice as much black carbon to Lahore’s air as biomass. Acting before temperatures fall and pollutants get trapped near the ground is central to the province’s smog strategy. The Environment Protection Agency recently said anti-smog measures were improving Lahore’s air quality.
In her message on the International Day for the Preservation of the Ozone Layer, Maryam Nawaz said the ozone layer is a natural shield against the sun’s harmful rays, and protecting it is essential to shield future generations from environmental change.
She said Punjab had introduced a comprehensive environmental policy for a “green future” for the first time, with tree plantation, smog control and clean energy made key government priorities. Plantation had been carried out over 50,000 acres, with 50 million trees planted, she said.
Under the clean-energy vision, green electric bus services are being extended to every district and tehsil, and electric bikes are being provided to students, women and other citizens. Green taxis have further promoted environment-friendly transport, she said. The chief minister claimed that more work had been done for environmental protection in the past two and a half years than in several decades. She urged citizens, especially young people, to adopt environmentally friendly lifestyles.
The day marks the signing of the Montreal Protocol, the international treaty to phase out ozone-depleting substances, to which Pakistan is a party.
Greening efforts also continued in Lahore. Teams of the Parks and Horticulture Authority (PHA) planted 450 Bougainvillea plants along a four-kilometre stretch of Khayaban-e-Jinnah, in line with the chief minister’s vision of turning Lahore into a “City of Flowers”.
PHA Managing Director Ahmad Usman Javed said 350 Amaltas saplings had earlier been planted along a two-and-a-half-kilometre stretch of the same road, and locations have been identified in other areas for more flowering plants. The plantation aims to beautify the city, promote a healthier environment and help address climate change.
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