LAHORE : The provincial capital’s atmosphere remained hazardous as the average AQI reached 364 here on Monday.
Data collected from IQAir revealed that PM2.5 concentration was 33.7 times the World Health Organisation annual PM2.5 guideline value.
The most polluted city localities included Barki Road (658), Bedian Road (657), DHA Phase VI (571), B Block, Phase 5, DHA (499), Cantonment (438), Askari X (428), Liberty (266), Chuhng (245), Model Town (237) and Wahdat Colony (222).
Met officials said a westerly wave was likely to approach western parts of the country and strengthen today (Tuesday), which was expected to grip most upper/central parts tomorrow (Wednesday), and persist in upper parts till 1st January, 2026.
They predicted that cold and partly cloudy to cloudy weather was expected over most parts of the country. However, rain wind-thunderstorm (snowfall over the hills) was likely in Balochistan. Rain-wind/thunderstorms (snowfall over the hills) were likely at a few places in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, Gilgit-Baltistan, Kashmir and adjoining hilly areas.
Moderate to dense fog (in patches) may develop over plain areas of North/South Punjab and upper Sindh during morning /night.
Meanwhile, heavy fog affected traffic flow on motorways in the Central Region. According to the Central Region spokesperson, Motorway M-2 from Lahore to Kot Momin was closed due to fog, while Motorway M-3 from Faizpur to Darkhana was closed. Similarly, Motorway M-4 from Pindi Bhattian to Khanewal and Lahore-Sialkot Motorway M-11 were also closed due to dense fog.
According to the Central Region spokesperson, heavy fog has covered the national highway in Lahore, Pattoki, Okara and Sahiwal while visibility was severely reduced in the areas of Chichawatni, Iqbal Nagar, Mian Channu, Khanewal, Multan and Bahawalpur. The visibility on the national highway has been recorded from 0 to 100 meters.
Motorway police have warned that lane violations in fog can lead to dangerous accidents, and passengers have been instructed to strictly follow lane discipline and avoid unnecessary travel.
According to the spokesperson, citizens should prefer to travel during daylight hours, while the hours from 10am to 6pm have been declared safe travel times in fog.
The spokesperson said that the purpose of the closure of motorways was to ensure the safety of life and property of the public. Drivers should ensure the use of fog lights, avoid high speed and maintain a safe distance from the vehicle in front. For further guidance and assistance, citizens can contact the Motorway Police Helpline 130, they concluded.
