While Punjab’s capital, Lahore, continues to lead the world pollution rankings, Karachi’s air quality suffered a dramatic drop on Friday morning as the city’s temperatures dropped, trapping pollutants near the ground.
The port city’s air quality index skyrocketed to “very unhealthy” 220, ranking Karachi as the fourth most polluted city globally.
The tiny particle matter in Karachi’s air that is most harmful to human health, PM2.5, was 25.8 times higher than the World Health Organization’s (WHO) annual air quality guideline value at around 9am, according to the Swiss group’s live air quality monitor.
In contrast, Lahore’s AQI was 732, with a PM2.5 pollution level of 88.4.
