Smog beset Pakistan megacity curbs rickshaws, restaurants

Pollution puffing rickshaws and barbeque restaurants were banned from operating in parts of Pakistan's second-largest city of Lahore on Wednesday, as public health officials battle choking smog.

The eastern megacity near the border with India regularly registers among the world's most polluted cities, and on Wednesday evening recorded nearly 20 times the level deemed safe by the World Health Organization (WHO).

Smog is particularly bad in winter when denser cold air traps the emissions from poor-quality fuel used to power vehicles and factories at ground level in the low-lying city of 14 million.

Seasonal crop burn-off by farmers on the outskirts of Lahore also contributes to toxic air the WHO says can cause strokes, heart disease, lung cancer and respiratory diseases.

The Environmental Protection Agency of eastern Punjab province published a notification saying new curbs would be introduced in four "air pollution hotspots" identified around the city.

Rickshaws running on more polluting two-stroke engines will be blocked from the zones whilst restaurants barbequing without filters to control smoke are subject to a "complete ban".

Government and private offices have also been told to have half their staff work from home starting Monday.

"How will the government save me from smog at my house?" asked 52-year-old sales executive Hafiz Saleem. "It's everywhere, no place is safe. These lockdowns are useless. Much more needs to be done."

According to UNICEF, nearly 600 million children in South Asia are exposed to high levels of air pollution.