Pakistan blames India's Diwali fireworks for Lahore's toxic air

ISLAMABAD - Pakistan has linked the deteriorating air quality in the northern city of Lahore to the celebration of Diwali in neighboring India, where firecrackers were set off over the weekend, leading to a blanket of toxic smog across the region. Lahore has topped the Swiss group IQAir's list of the world's most polluted major cities for a second consecutive day, with an air quality index (AQI) of 263, which is classified as "very unhealthy."

The city's PM2.5 concentration, a harmful airborne particle, was reported to be 37.2 times higher than the World Health Organization's annual guideline, according to IQAir. Pakistani Punjab's Environment Protection Minister Marriyum Aurangzeb suggested that the pollutants were carried into the region by light winds and air drifting from India following Diwali.

However, the air pollution situation is expected to improve gradually as the weather conditions change and winds shift direction, she added. India's foreign ministry did not provide an immediate response to a request for comment. According to Indian government data, firecrackers were responsible for nearly 55% of the PM2.5 in Delhi the day before the report, while vehicle emissions, construction dust, and smoke from crop-waste burning also significantly contribute to winter pollution in both countries.