The Pakistan Environmental Protection Agency (Pak-EPA), working under the Ministry of Climate Change and Environmental Coordination, has intensified its crackdown on winter smog in the federal capital by launching extensive inspections of vehicles and industrial units, demolishing non-compliant brick kilns and establishing new emission-testing stations as part of a multi-tier plan to curb rising air pollution.
Pak-EPA Director General Nazia Zaib Ali said the measures to control air pollution, including smog, were being implemented under the agency’s short-, medium- and long-term strategy developed in close coordination with the Ministry of Climate Change and Environmental Coordination (MoCC), Islamabad Traffic Police (ITP), Capital Development Authority (CDA) and the Islamabad Capital Territory (ICT) Administration.
Smog, a hazardous mix of fog and pollutants such as nitrogen oxides, carbon monoxide, sulphur oxides and particulate matter, has worsened across northern Pakistan this season. Citing recent research, the federal environmental watchdog’s head Ms Ali noted that the transport sector remains the largest contributor to deteriorating air quality, accounting for nearly 43 per cent of smog-forming emissions in Punjab, while a 2023 Urban Unit study determined that the figure for Lahore stood at a staggering 83 per cent.
According to Pak-EPA data collected by its enforcement team, since the anti-smoke drive was launched on December 1, more than 1,000 diesel-powered vehicles have been inspected at major entry points to Islamabad in joint operations with the ITP. Over 300 challans have been issued and more than 80 vehicles impounded for violating National Environmental Quality Standards (NEQS) relating to emissions and noise.
To support enforcement efforts, four new Emission Testing Stations have been set up at D-Chowk, Lake View Park, Metro Cash & Carry and F-9 Park, where vehicle owners receive compliance certificates after inspection, DG Nazia Zaib Ali said.
“We cannot allow non-compliant vehicles at any cost to poison the city’s air and endanger public health,” Ms Ali emphasised. “Our enforcement teams are in the field every day and violators are being penalised without exception. Anti-smog guns, enhanced monitoring and real-time inspections are part of our immediate response to this health emergency.”
Pak-EPA Director Dr Zaigham Abbas said the crackdown on industrial pollution had also been intensified. All 30 brick kilns operating in the capital have now shifted to environment-friendly zigzag technology, while three non-compliant kilns were demolished, he said. In Sangjani, where 48 marble factories operate, 32 have been found compliant and 16 remain under scrutiny; three have already been sealed. In the I-10 Industrial Area, two steel manufacturing units have been under round-the-clock surveillance since 2018 through live camera feeds monitoring stack emissions and raw material handling. Scheduled inspections of industrial units across the capital are continuing, he added.
“We have adopted a zero-tolerance approach towards industries operating with outdated and polluting technologies,” Dr Abbas said. “Our goal is not only enforcement but also helping industries transition to cleaner and safer production systems.”
Ms Ali said that under its short-term plan, the agency aims to deploy anti-smog guns in hotspot areas, tighten checks on ageing and high-emission vehicles and enforce a ban on the entry of non-compliant transport into Islamabad. Industrial emissions are being monitored more frequently, with joint operations by Pak-EPA, CDA and the ICT Administration being scaled up.
Medium-term measures include expanding the air quality monitoring network, enhancing the agency’s technical capacity, coordinating with provincial EPAs to address cross-border smog sources and undertaking extensive tree plantation campaigns. The legal framework governing environmental protection is also being revised.
Over the long term, the agency plans to implement the Electric Vehicle (EV) Policy 2025, introduce an old-vehicle retirement mechanism, ensure wider availability of clean fuels and enforce the National Clean Air Policy 2023 to achieve sustained improvements in air quality.
Ministry spokesperson Muhammad Saleem Shaikh said public awareness campaigns through print, electronic and social media had been launched. Pak-EPA has also directed all government and private organisations in Islamabad to have their entire vehicle fleets tested for emissions at certified laboratories. Twenty-eight organisations have been served personal hearing notices for non-compliance.
“The government is treating air pollution as a public health emergency,” Mr Shaikh said. “We are strengthening enforcement, expanding monitoring systems and engaging citizens so that Islamabad does not go down the same path as other smog-hit cities. Clean air is not a privilege but a constitutional right.”
Pak-EPA DG Nazia Zaib Ali stressed that public cooperation was crucial to the success of the anti-smog drive and urged the residents to reduce unnecessary travel, use masks on high-smog days, improve indoor air quality and avoid open burning of waste for their own good and environmental protection.
“We must realise that the federal environmental watchdog’s efforts alone will not be enough without broader public support,” she cautioned. “With public cooperation, Islamabad can avoid the severe smog episodes being witnessed elsewhere in the country.”
