Lahore, often hailed as Pakistan's cultural capital, is now ranked the most polluted city in the world, according to a daily report by Swiss-based air-quality monitoring firm IQAir.
The city's air quality index (AQI) hit an alarming 215 on October 3, a significant jump from 175 recorded just a few days earlier on September 30. While currently, it ranks second with an AQI of 161. This deterioration comes as Lahore braces for its notorious smog season, which typically worsens in the coming months.
The concentration of fine particulate matter (PM2.5) in the air was 25.2 times higher than the World Health Organization's recommended guidelines, marking Lahore’s air as "very unhealthy."
In contrast, other Pakistani cities such as Rawalpindi, Islamabad, Abbottabad, and Karachi report moderate air quality.
