Punjab Chief Minister Mohsin Naqvi has announced that the government will install at least 12 “air filter ionization units” or smog towers in the provincial capital of Lahore to mitigate the effect of smog which is causing health hazards in the city.

The province is also going to ban combustion engine motorbikes and people would be allowed to buy only electric bikes, he said in a statement on Saturday.

The statement came as ten districts of Punjab underwent a weekly lockdown on Saturday.

Naqvi said that the provincial government was taking all the possible steps to control smog and it had approached Chinese experts who will visit Lahore shortly.

Punjab has been contemplating construction of smog towers with the help of China for a few weeks now.

A technical team from Punjab will visit Almatay on Wednesday, he said.

Naqvi urged people to wear masks and said the government was working on the plans to induce artificial rain in the city.

He said the authorities will not only ban combustion engine motorbikes but also launch a crackdown against unregistered Qinqi rickshaws. However, before the crackdown existing Qinqi rickshaw owners would be allowed to register for free, he said.

The chief minister said Punjab would set up an environment lap and enforce quality controls to curb the sale of substandard fuel at fuel stations.

Smog lockdown

At least 10 Punjab districts were under a lockdown on Saturday. The lockdown took effect Saturday morning and all schools, colleges and universities were closed.

Markets, shops, gyms, cinema houses, and offices were allowed to open only after 3pm.

The lockdown was enforced in Lahore, Nankana, Sheikhupura, Kasur, Gujranwala, Gujarat, Sialkot, Narowal, Hafizabad and Mandi Bahauddin.