——- Govt mulls three-day lockdown in Lahore, Multan to combat Smog
From Abid Usman
LAHORE: After weeks of expressing disappointment with the Punjab government over mishandling ecological disaster in the province, the Lahore High Court (LHC) on Friday directed the Punjab government to make long-term policy on smog.
Justice Shahid Karim of the LHC heard clubbed applications on curtailing smog.
Punjab Advocate General Khalid Ishaq Khan appeared before the LHC.
At the onset of hearing, Justice Karim asked Punjab AG to convey his message to Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz upon her return from London to make at least ten-year long policy to curb smog.
The Punjab AG told court that the Punjab government had earmarked budget for electric buses in Punjab, adding that electric buses would be on the roads by June 2025. He also informed court about the government’s measures on food security.
He said the government was also ramping up efforts to curb dangers posed by floods and conserve rain water. Justice Karim praised the government for taking these measures while suggesting that the government should also ban sprawling housing societies on agricultural land on which the Punjab AG apprised him that the government was also working on the Land Acquisition Act in letter and spirit.
The court also suggested the government to plant saplings and conserve forests.
The Punjab AG responded that the government was working on urban forestation, adding that the government was also closely monitoring the smog situation in the entire province.
Meanwhile, Senior provincial minister Marriyum Aurangzeb on Friday declared health emergency in Lahore and Multan to combat smog. She said the lockdown could be imposed on next Friday, Saturday and Sunday in both the cities.
The senior minister was addressing a press conference in Lahore as the city remains engulfed with hazardous level of smog.
“The chief minister had already made a 10-year plan in March to combat smog,” said Marriyum Aurangzeb, who also holds the portfolio of environment.
She said smog had become a national disaster.
Addressing the news conference, the senior minister said that the departments concerned were consulted before formulating the 10-year plan to combat smog.
