For anti-smog, permanent and concrete measures are necessary
The Environmental Protection Department's claim of a zero-tolerance policy against polluters is limited to verbal submissions.
The problem of smog in Pakistan and especially Punjab province is not new, we have been facing this situation for the past several years and we have not been able to control it till now. In Britain, the smog problem was on the rise in the last half of the century, so it was under control in a few years, laws were made and they were strictly enforced, but we have a policy and laws، But after eight years, the situation is getting worse every year.
Apart from the use of air-polluting fuels in vehicles, smoke from industrial factories, black smoke-emitting brick kilns and crop residue burning, our transport system is responsible for the increase in air pollution. It is said that there is a ban on burning of crop residue, but videos of burning of crop residue have been going viral on social media. Timely action is taken against smoke-emitting vehicles, but nothing is done on a permanent basis. Even now, the measures taken by the caretaker government may reduce the intensity of smog temporarily, but it is by no means a permanent solution. For this, it is necessary not only to implement the policies but also to apply the relevant laws to everyone without discrimination.
The Punjab government had also introduced a 10-point policy to tackle smog last year and the Environmental Protection Department had claimed that there was a zero-tolerance policy against those who caused pollution and that they would be dealt with strictly, but that did not appear to be the case. Stayed. It is being said that about 35 crore rupees will be spent on artificial rain in Lahore, which will surely fall on the national exchequer. Closing schools, shops and restaurants is also causing damage, the financial loss is what it is, according to a report by a non-governmental organization, at least one person is killed every year in Pakistan due to air pollution and the resulting diseases. 28 thousand people are dying.
According to a study by the University of Chicago, the life expectancy of Pakistanis has been shortened by seven years. The report further stated that apart from Lahore, Sheikhupura and Kasur, residents of Peshawar are being affected the most by air pollution. The Lahore High Court is constantly trying to make the concerned departments and governments realize the nature and severity of this problem, but the style of government is the same and so is the attitude of the departments.
The issue of smog is intensifying due to not being resolved on a permanent basis, the caretaker government is doing what it can, but no elected government has taken this issue seriously. Tried to make a living by taking temporary measures, we are already suffering from climate change, suffering losses but are not ready to follow the principle of conservation of progress. There is still time to learn lessons from other countries, if the steps taken by them are adopted here too, much improvement can be made. If we still do not change our attitude, do not take steps in the present to improve the future, in the same way we remain immersed in the dream, then we will be guilty of our future generations.