Chief Minister Punjab Sardar Usman Buzdar chaired a meeting at his office to review steps for dealing with smog and decided in-principle to the proposal of plying electric rickshaws and vehicles in the province along with the installation of biogas plants. A smog-monitoring cell has also been set up in PDMA.
Finance Minister Hashim Jawan Bakht, Chief Secretary, SMBR, ACS (LG), secretaries of agriculture, transport, industries, environment, energy and housing departments, DIG (Traffic), DG PDMA and others attended the meeting.
The CM was told that 43 per cent smog is resulting due to vehicular emissions and powers have been delegated to districts for taking steps to deal with an increase in air quality index. More than 204 FIRs have been lodged in two days due to smog-related activities besides challan of 11685 vehicles and 109 industries.
The meeting decided to shut conventional brick-kiln from November 7 in the whole of the province while the brick-kiln operating on zigzag technology will continue to function.
The CM apprised the participants that the DCs have been delegated the powers of the relief commissioner to overcome smog. Smog control centres have been set up in every district along with the nomination of focal persons in the offices of commissioners and DCs, he added.
The CM directed to strictly ensure the ban on burning of tyres in factories adding that coordination between government and civil society is also important in this regard.
Ban on the burning of crop stubble will be strictly implemented and steel rolling industries will also be transferred to environment-friendly technology, the CM said and directed the PCSIR to examine developing smog-towers for the provision of clean air.
