Lahore, October 26, 2025: The Punjab government has revised school timings starting Monday as worsening smog continues to choke the province, with all schools now scheduled to begin daily sessions at 8:45am.
For the past three days, Lahore has topped the list of the world’s most polluted cities, with the Air Quality Index (AQI) soaring to 412, a level considered hazardous to health. Dense smog has blanketed the city and surrounding districts, prompting health warnings and a province-wide crackdown on pollution sources.
The Punjab Disaster Management Authority (PDMA) has issued a high alert across the province’s eastern belt — including Lahore, Gujranwala, Sheikhupura, Kasur, Nankana Sahib, Faisalabad, Multan, Bahawalpur, Rahim Yar Khan and Khanpur.
According to PDMA Director General Irfan Ali Kathia, the intensity of smog is expected to increase from November through mid-December, based on forecasts from the Meteorological Department.
The decision to change school timings was announced by Punjab Education Minister Rana Sikandar Hayat on X (formerly Twitter), stating: “Winter school timing — 8:45am to 1:30pm,” in view of the prevailing smog conditions.
Speaking at a media briefing, Senior Minister Marriyum Aurangzeb said Punjab now has a comprehensive digital and AI-based forecasting system to monitor smog patterns.
Developed using data from previous years, she said the system is accessible to the public via the provincial air quality portal and updated daily by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
Addressing commentary surrounding the crisis, Marriyum said: “First of all, all those who have suddenly become environmental experts and issue reports or make statements as they please — I want to clarify that smog is a seasonal phenomenon.”
She explained that smog typically occurs for about three months when temperature inversions trap pollutants close to the ground:
“Cold air forms a lid over the atmosphere, preventing particulate pollutants from dispersing. That lid, together with atmospheric pressure, creates the haze we call smog.”
Marriyum noted that previous governments relied on emergency closures of schools, restaurants, and businesses to manage smog, but this time, the province is adopting a data-driven and sustained mitigation strategy.
“For the first time, we are managing smog during the season without resorting to lockdown-style restrictions — and we are improving Lahore’s Air Quality Index,” she said.
She added that smog guns are being used only as temporary measures, while year-round anti-pollution efforts are underway.
“We are not only active during these three months,” she said, “but carrying out smog mitigation efforts throughout the year.”
