The Lahore High Court (LHC) Thursday ordered the office of the Home Secretary, Punjab to not block the roads during national and international cricket matches.

Hearing a petition which called the court’s attention to the matter, the judge asked the authorities: “Who ordered you to block [entire] road [sections] during the matches?”

At this, the Chief Traffic Officer (CTO) of Lahore told the court these instructions are issued by the Home Department. “No police policymaking is involved in the decision,” he said.

During the hearing, the home secretary personally appeared in the court.

During the hearing, Justice Shahid Karim said Lahore has become one of the most polluted cities in the world and the atmosphere is polluted because of intense smog.

The court said no roads will be blocked during cricket matches whether local or international. Responding to the directive, the official assured the court an alternative traffic plan would be issued to maintain the flow of traffic during the games.

“If the Pakistan Cricket Board is hosting international events, they should accommodate the teams near the stadiums,” Justice Karim said, observing closing or blocking roads was not a solution.

“Every time an international event is scheduled in Pakistan, the first step taken by authorities is to block roads and traffic, people often complain,” the judge said.

“When the New Zealand cricket team arrived in Rawalpindi, the Cricket Stadium Road was closed for all the matches.

Murree Road from Faizabad to the Double Road was closed every time the cricket teams arrived at the stadium or left. People were told to use alternative routes to avoid inconvenience.”