Pakistan accuses India of deteriorating air quality in Lahore

Pakistan blamed this week's deteriorating air quality on neighboring India, where fireworks were launched during the Hindu festival of Diwali over the weekend, causing much of the north of the country to plunge into toxic smog.

The Pakistani city of Lahore on Tuesday, November 10, for the second day in a row topped the ranking of the most polluted major cities in the world, compiled by the Swiss company IQAir, with an air quality index (AQI) of 263, which corresponds to the category “very harmful to health”.

“According to IQAir, the concentration in the city of fine particles PM2.5, harmful particles that can penetrate deep into the lungs, 37.2 times higher than the annual standard of the World Health Organization”, – stated in the material.

Pakistan's Punjab Environment Minister Marrium Aurangzeb said pollutants were brought to the region by light winds and air currents from India after Diwali.

"However, air pollution is expected to gradually decrease from the evening as weather conditions improve and wind direction changes," she said.

On Tuesday, Delhi was ranked the second most polluted major city in the world with an air quality index (AQI) of 188, according to IQAir. Indian government data showed that a day earlier, fireworks were responsible for nearly 55% of PM2.5 fine particle emissions in the Indian capital.