Nearly 20 lakh people have sought medical treatment for respiratory issues in Pakistan’s Punjab province in the last one month. The local health department said, people are suffering from respiratory, asthma, heart diseases and stroke due to smog as Lahore and Multan remain the world’s most polluted cities.

Health department data showed that as many as 19,34,030 cases were reported from across the province in October, with 12,62,30 from Lahore alone. It also revealed that over 5,000 patients suffered strokes across Punjab province in October.

The average air quality reading in Lahore remains well over 1400 in Lahore while it has crossed the 2000-mark several times in Multan. Local media reported that the AQI in Karachi also saw a sharp decline this morning.