Gujar khan  -  The overwhelming smog has forced the Punjab administration to close educational institutes, but little is being done to control the smog and smoke-emitting activities in the towns and villages. Residents have urged upon the authorities to enforce laws against the spread of smog. 

According to a survey conducted by The Nation, the burning of toxic plastics and other refuse in the towns and villages was going unnoticed by the authorities. It is common practice by the sweepers of town civic agencies to set on fire the dumps of filth here and there instead of shifting the sewage to the dumping sites.

It has also been noticed that the scavengers who collect plastic and cables, etc., set on fire these electricity cables to separate copper wires, and this activity adds a lot of toxic smog to the environment. Similarly, smoke-emitting vehicles largely go unnoticed by the National Highway and Motorway Police as well as the traffic wardens, and the pollution is the fate of the inhabitants.

The brick kilns and iron factories in the industrial zones are seldom being checked for adopting zigzag technology to control the pollution. Mr. Kaleem Ullah Bhatti, an advocate while talking to The Nation, said that the district administration and the civic agencies should wake up to enforce laws while the educational institutions and even mosques, mohallah, should be involved in creating awareness against environmental pollution on war footing.

He regretted that the police authorities seldom bring to law those who are burning chemicals and cables at their warehouses and workshops. 

Mr. Bhatti regretted that schools have been closed across the province by issuing a single order, while the chief secretary did not bother to sensitize the district authorities and municipal authorities to initiate action against the air polluters. 

The residents have urged upon the Chief Minister of Punjab and the Prime Minister of Pakistan to activate efforts for environment protection to control the spread of smog at war footing by engaging police, forests, and district administration.