LAHORE: Much to the relief of citizens, the light rain which poured down Thursday in Lahore has improved the air quality of the otherwise smog-choked city as its AQI level has gone down to 169 today Lahore .
Now Lahore has changed its position from the most polluted city of the world to number seven.
Following the improvement in the air quality level in the Punjab capital, the provincial government has lifted all the smog-related restrictions.
The Punjab government has also announced winter break. The educational institutions will remain closed from December 18 till January 1.
In his tweet, Punjab Chief Minister Mohsin Naqvi informed that there would be no restrictions planned for the upcoming weekend due to improvement in the air quality level.
The weather in Lahore will remain misty today with minimum temperature recorded at 13C and maximum temperature would reach 23C.
LAHORE (Dunya News) – The provincial capital and the Punjab remained engulfed in smog on Sunday morning and Lahore remained at second place in the list of most polluted cities of the world.
The air quality index (AQI) of Lahore was 320 in the morning. Karachi followed with AQI 244.
Smog, which is a mix of smoke and fog, reduced considerably when the caretaker Punjab government had taken a bold decision to clamp down a smart lockdown on 10 districts of Punjab late last month.
Doctors, in the meanwhile, advised people to wear face masks as respiratory problems surged by breathing in the polluted air.
Punjab announces holid Lahore
Punjab Interim Chief Minister Mohsin Naqvi chaired a meeting of the Cabinet Committee on anti-smog and announced that schools will remain closed on Saturday in the province.
As students will miss classes, markets and businesses will remain open as per the schedule and restaurants will also operate.
Furthermore, CM directed a stringent crackdown against smoke-blowing vehicles as the government is taking extreme measures to keep AQI levels low.
In a recent development, the Punjab government announced a schedule for winter vacations for all public and private schools across the province.
Winter Holidays in Punjab 2023
Naqvi earlier announced that winter vacations for children will commence from December 18, 2023, to January 1, 2024.
Will there be school holiday Lahore
In recent development, the government ruled out early winter vacations in Lahore despite the fact that a blanket of smog thickened in the metropolis, and adjoining areas, causing residents to visit hospitals.
Meanwhile, the government is taking measures to curb air pollution, and a crackdown against smoke-emitting vehicles is underway.
Lahore’s Air Quality Index AQI Lahore
Lahore continues to remain among most polluted cities in the world AQI touched hazardous level. From vehicle emissions to industrial pollution, and construction activities to stubble burning, the capital of the region grapples with several crisis.
Parts of Lahore received light rain in midnight, and it helped clearing thick smog in the city.
The city witnessed showers in several regions, that also caused dip in mercury, with the moisture level in the air remained over 70pc.
Residents voice health concerns as smog continues to batter Pakistan’s Lahore
The eastern Pakistani city topped the world’s most polluted city index several times last month, with an AQI above 300The issue has forced authorities to announce lockdowns, school closures, and crack down on smoke-emitting vehicles
LAHORE: Residents of Lahore on Saturday voiced concerns about their health as toxic smog continues to affect Pakistan’s second largest city for weeks, with the government taking various measures to reduce pollutants in the air.
The eastern Pakistani city topped the world’s most polluted city index several times last month, consistently having an air quality index (AQI) above 300, according to Swiss group IQAir.
The AQI is a standardized tool measuring air pollutants, serving as a crucial barometer for public health. An AQI between 101 and 200 is considered ‘unhealthy’, particularly for sensitive groups while an AQI between 201 and 300 is said to be ‘very unhealthy’ and above 300 is ‘hazardous.’
Residents, who complain of difficulty in breathing, say smog remains “one of the most serious issues” facing them.
“This is like one of the most serious issues we are facing as students. First of all, it is not [just] affecting our health but it is also affecting our environment. Whenever I am stepping out of the house, I feel discomfortable breathing in the air,” Uzair Asif, a student, told Arab News.
“The problem of smog is a recurring one, becoming more severe each year in Lahore in the autumn and winter months when weather changes mean pollutants remain trapped in the air for longer.”
Heavy smog has forced authorities in the Punjab province to announce several measures, including lockdowns, school closures, changing business hours for markets, and cracking down on smoke-emitting vehicles and industries.
But people say these measures are just a “temporary solution” to the issue.
“That [lockdown] is just a temporary solution. Nothing is going to change from it. It will just reduce [the smog level] temporarily,” said Nazeer Ullah, another resident. “For permanent [solution], the government should shift [fuel-powered] vehicles to electric ones and install factory filters for smoke.”
To combat air pollution, real-time air quality data must first be made available to everyone so people may take better protection measures and mobilize efforts around tackling air pollution, according to experts.
Reducing industrial and vehicular emissions is critical to improve the air quality, for which people should be carpooling and using public transport more.
The squad named Sunday, which includes the 37-year-old opener, is only for the first test at Perth from Dec. 14-19.
If he holds his place for the second test at the Melbourne Cricket Ground starting on Boxing Day, Warner will be in line for his dream farewell on his home ground in Sydney from Jan. 3 to 7.
Warner’s recent test form has been mixed and he has averaged 28 in test matches since the summer of 2019 when he made a triple century against Pakistan at Adelaide. He has made clear his wish to end his Baggy Green career at Sydney while continuing to play for Australia in white ball cricket.
Warner will start the summer opening the batting with Usman Khawaja while opener candidates Cameron Bancroft, Matt Renshaw and Marcus Harris will have a chance to stake their claims with the Prime Minister’s XI which plays Pakistan at Canberra from Dec. 6 to 9.
Fast bowler Lance Morris is closer to a test debut after being recalled to the 14-man squad. Cameron Green also returns after previously losing his test spot to Mitch Marsh and Alex Carey has been named wicketkeeper after losing that role at the recent one-day World Cup.
Spinner Nathan Lyon is back after recovering from a calf injury which ruled him out of the latter stages of the Ashes series. He replaces Todd Murphy.
Chairman of selectors George Bailey said the incumbents had earned the opportunity to play the first test of the summer after an outstanding winter in which Australia won the World Test Championship and retained the Ashes.
“Thirteen members of the squad were part of the victorious World Test Championship and successful Ashes tours over the winter and Lance Morris has been recalled after recovering from his back injury over the same period,” Bailey said.
“As ever, there will be opportunities in the short to medium term to break into this squad and we look forward to seeing the continued strong performances from players who have been performing domestically, many of whom will get a tremendous opportunity in the PM’s XI fixture against Pakistan later this week.”
Morris has taken 11 wickets at 25.5 in three Sheffield Shield matches for West Australia since returning from the back injury which ruled him out of the Ashes.
Warner’s decision to publicly announce his hope for a Sydney finish was met with strong criticism from his former Australia teammate, fast bowler Mitchell Johnson.
In a column Sunday in the West Australian newspaper, Johnson took issue with Warner.
“As we prepare for David Warner’s farewell series, can somebody please tell me why?” Johnson wrote. “Why a struggling test opener gets to nominate his own retirement date.
“And why a player at the center of one of the biggest scandals in Australian cricket history warrants a hero’s send-off?”
Johnson made reference to the Sandpapergate ball-tampering scandal involving the Australia team in South Africa in 2018. Warner received a 12-month ban for his role in the scandal.
“Although Warner wasn’t alone in Sandpapergate, he was at the time a senior member of the team and someone who liked to use his perceived power as a “leader,” Johnson wrote. “Now the way he is going out is underpinned by more of the same arrogance and disrespect to our country.”
Pakistan Cricket Board drops ex-captain Salman Butt from selection panel after backlash
- The PCB announced the appointment of Butt as consultant to Pakistan chief selector on Friday
- The 39-year-old was sentenced to prison in 2011 in a spot-fixing scandal, banned for 10 years
ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has dropped ex-cricketer Salman Butt from its panel of consultants for team selection, Chief Selector Wahab Riaz announced Saturday, following backlash over Butt’s appointment.
The PCB announced the appointment of Butt along with Kamran Akmal and Rao Iftikhar Anjum as consultants to Riaz on Friday, amid a reshuffle in the national side and the board’s management.
Pakistanis took to social media and strongly criticized the PCB for the appointment of Butt, who was sent to prison in 2011 and banned from playing for 10 years for his part in a conspiracy to bowl deliberate no-balls during a 2010 Test match against England at Lord’s.
Speaking at a press conference at Lahore’s Gaddafi Stadium, Riaz said it was his decision to appoint Butt his consultant as he understood cricket.
“Salman Butt’s name has now been withdrawn,” he said, adding that there was no pressure from anyone.
“I took the decision to make Salman Butt a consultant. Now, I am also taking the decision to remove Salman Butt.”
Butt represented Pakistan in 33 Tests, 78 ODIs and 24 T20Is. He made 5,209 runs spanning the three formats with 11 international centuries. He was in the T20 World Cup winning squad in 2009.
His appointment came as part of a reshuffle that began amid Pakistan’s poor show at the World Cup that saw the national side crashing out of the showpiece tournament even before the semi-final stage. Pakistan finished fifth in the 10-team World Cup tournament that culminated last month, with Australia lifting the trophy for a record sixth time.
Following below-par performance of the team, Babar Azam resigned from the captaincy in all formats and Shan Masood was made test captain. Shaheen Afridi was appointed as skipper of T20 side.
Riaz was appointed Pakistan’s chief selector last month, after Inzamam-ul-Haq stepped down in October following allegations of a conflict of interests, while former captain Mohammad Hafeez was named as team director, who will also be the head coach of the team on the twin tours of Australia and New Zealand.
The PCB last month also appointed former international players Umar Gul and Saeed Ajmal as bowling coaches for the national team.
- Pakistan’s first IT delegation to Qatar aims to explore the market for local software houses and freelance developers
- Qatar has made investments in smart city initiatives and held technologically advanced events like FIFA World Cup
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s first information technology delegation to Qatar landed in Doha on Sunday to seek potential investments and explore the market for software houses and freelance developers in the country.
Most countries in the Gulf region are actively trying to diversify their economies away from oil and gas reliance by investing heavily in technology sectors, creating innovation hubs and fostering digital infrastructures to encourage growth in various industries.
The strategic shift includes significant emphasis on adopting advanced digital technologies such as AI, cloud computing and cybersecurity, aiming to transform these countries into knowledge-based economies.
Qatar has made notable strides in the area by making robust investments in smart city initiatives, tech start-ups and a commitment to hosting technologically advanced events like the FIFA World Cup 2022.
“Our visit to Qatar kicked off with an event at the Pakistan embassy attended by Pakistani diaspora in Qatar alongside 30 top IT companies we brought from Pakistan,” Caretaker Information Minister Dr. Umar Saif announced in a social media post.
“This is the first ever visit of an IT delegation from Pakistan to Qatar to explore the huge untapped potential in the region to increase Pakistan’s IT exports,” he added. “This will also help us prepare for a substantial participation in the upcoming Web Summit in Qatar in a few months.”
According to a statement released by the IT ministry, the fundamental objective of the conference is to encourage Qatari investors and hi-tech firms to invest in Pakistan.
Pakistani authorities have been striving to secure foreign investment to strengthen the country’s economy by identifying various areas which they believe to have maximum potential.
These include agriculture, mining, information technology, defense production and energy sectors.
Pakistan also established the Special Investment Facilitation Council (SIFC) – a civil-military hybrid forum – in July to fast-track decision-making and promote investment from foreign nations, particularly from the Gulf region.
ISLAMABAD:
While opera was discovered in the 1600s by the Florentine Camerata in Italy, notably in cities like Venice, it was an evening dedicated to Sufi music during a Pakistani reality show that led Saira Peter, a British-Pakistani soprano, to the discovery of a genre of opera, “Sufi opera.”
The message of love, peace, and harmony in the writings of Sindhi Sufi mystic Shah Abdul Latif Bhittai fascinated Peter during her stint as a judge at the “Voice of Sindh” reality show in 2014, compelling her to sing his Sufi poetry in English.
In 2017, the British-Pakistani opera star, who can sing in 17 languages and has performed globally, released an album titled “Resplendent,” based on Bhittai’s poetry.
She now plans to establish Sufi opera as a mainstream genre.
“This Sufi opera is a fusion of both Western classical music and our Pakistani classical music… you can say that it’s like merging two worlds together,” Peter told Arab News in an interview this week.
Born in Karachi, Peter says she used to sing in church choirs and began her Western classical journey, learning from Paul Knight, a disciple of Benjamin Britten, in London in the early 2000s after her family moved there.
Peter’s father, Zafar Francis, pioneered the Noor Jehan Arts Center in London, opened by British superstar Sir Cliff Richard in 1998. Peter, who is the director of the performing arts center, teaches both Western and Pakistani classical music there.
In 2018, the British-Pakistani opera star was requested by the UK government to record the British national anthem in her voice.
“It was ‘God Save the Queen.’ After that, the British government asked me again to record … ‘God Save the King,’” she said. “So, they use my recorded British national anthem for their ceremonies, like, you know, when they give citizenship.”
Peter is currently collaborating with London-based composer Knight to perform the Sufi Opera “Marvi’s Tears,” based on Bhittai’s folktale about Marvi, a village girl who resisted a powerful king’s overtures and chose to live among her own village folk.
She will play the lead role in the opera, expected to be staged in London early next year.
“We are working on it and it’s nearly ready to be performed in London arenas. We will have lots of opera singers from London,” Peter said.
“The first workshop is going to be in London in February … so we will have live Pakistani musicians and live Western classical musicians, they will be performing together.”
Peter calls it is a “great honor” for her to portray “Marvi’s Tears” in the UK.
“To me it’s really a great honor as a British-Pakistani to portray [a] Pakistani story with Western classical people,” she said. “And this story actually depicts the positive image of Pakistan.”
