The Consortium for Development Policy Research held a session of its Lahore Policy Exchange on “How is air pollution violating your right to a healthy life?”, on Wednesday, 13th November.
As temperatures decrease in the months from October to January, Punjab’s air quality reaches unhealthy to hazardous levels, visible to citizens as a thick smog. An increase in air pollution directly correlates to an increase in hospital admission rates, especially in the young and the elderly. The high level of smog is neither a new problem, nor one that came without warning, yet there is limited data on pollution, making it difficult to counter the causes and its impact on human health. Amnesty International has declared that the government’s failure to protect people from exposure to hazardous air in Punjab is violating their human rights to life and health.