Lahore continued to rank as the most polluted city in the world in terms of air quality, global monitor IQAir said on Wednesday.

A day ago, the city’s Air Quality Index (AQI) reached a severe peak of 422 but dropped to 341 today — still categorised as “hazardous” — keeping it at the top of the list of cities with the poorest air quality.

Behind the Punjab capital in the rankings were New Delhi with an AQI score of 232, Beijing at 222, Kinshasa and Kathmandu at 155 each, and Karachi at 140.

The Punjab government has taken notice of the situation and raised a high alert, including revising school timings across the province to begin at 8:35am.

In response to the crisis, the Lahore Waste Management Company (LWMC) has also launched a large-scale anti-smog operation, deploying 16 mechanical washers, 50 regular washers, and 400 workers for road washing and water sprinkling.

Meanwhile, Punjab Senior Minister Marriyum Aurangzeb, in a statement, praised the efforts of Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz in handling the anti-smog operations, calling her hard work “a testament to the success of the vision of improving the environment”.

“In the coming years, Punjab will see improvements like Beijing,” she said.

She added that the improvements and measures taken to reduce smog had played a role in changing the mindset of farmers.

According to a report by the Space and Upper Atmosphere Research Commission (Suparco), this year’s environmental violations score was 294.

“Action is underway against plants causing air pollution,” the minister said.