LAHORE: The Punjab government has revised school timings across the province starting Monday, with daily sessions now beginning at 8:45am, as thick smog continues to grip Lahore and other major cities.
For the third consecutive day, Lahore has topped global pollution charts, with its Air Quality Index (AQI) soaring to 412, a level classified as hazardous, prompting health alerts and a province-wide crackdown on pollution sources.
The Punjab Disaster Management Authority (PDMA) has issued a high alert for districts including Lahore, Gujranwala, Sheikhupura, Kasur, Nankana Sahib, Faisalabad, Multan, Bahawalpur, Rahim Yar Khan, and Khanpur. PDMA Director General Irfan Ali Kathia warned that the intensity of smog is likely to worsen from November through mid-December, citing forecasts from the Meteorological Department.
Punjab Education Minister Rana Sikandar Hayat announced the revised “winter school timing, 8:45am to 1:30pm” on his X account, noting that the change was made in response to deteriorating air quality.
Meanwhile, Senior Minister Marriyum Aurangzeb said during a media briefing that Punjab had introduced a digital and AI-based smog forecasting system, developed from years of environmental data. The system, accessible via the provincial air quality portal, provides daily forecasts from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
Responding to criticism, Marriyum said that smog was a seasonal atmospheric phenomenon rather than a sudden surge in pollution. She explained that during winter months, temperature inversions and cold air trap particulate matter under a “lid,” creating dense haze conditions.
“It cannot be that yesterday the AQI was 160 and today, because of local pollutants, it has suddenly jumped to 380,” she said, adding that morning readings are typically higher due to colder air, which disperses later in the day as temperatures rise.
She noted that smog guns were only a temporary measure and that the government was managing the situation without resorting to school closures or lockdown-style restrictions for the first time.
Marriyum added that mitigation work was ongoing beyond the smog season. “We are not only active during these three months,” she said, “but carrying out smog mitigation efforts throughout the year.”
