Overview
- The Environment Department reports improving air quality this November under an accelerated anti-smog strategy led by Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz Sharif and supported by the province’s largest environment-focused budget.
- Authorities say 41 air monitoring stations, drone surveillance, smog guns, and a specialized EPF force form the backbone of the expanded monitoring and response network.
- EPA emergency actions have halted construction in high-pollution zones and imposed zero tolerance for non-compliant industrial units, alongside stepped-up dust-reduction operations.
- Transport controls bar vehicles from entering pollution hotspots without a valid VICS certificate, while farm residue burning faces a strict ban enforced through drones, geo-fencing, and rapid field response.
- Public-health steps include daily advisories and free medical camps stocked with medicines, oxygen, and staff, with guidance to wear masks and limit unnecessary travel.