International: As a thick blanket of smog hovered over Lahore, the city of 14 million people that saw the Air Quality Index (AQI) cross an alarming 1,000 notches on Thursday, the government took steps to prevent citizens' exposure to the polluted air deemed hazardous for public health and safety.

Pakistan's most populated province of Punjab on Wednesday ordered schools closed in smog-hit main cities, shifting them to online learning until November 17, as the country battles record air pollution.

Pakistan's province of Punjab set up a "smog war room" to tackle severe pollution, officials said, as poor air quality turned its capital of Lahore into the world's most polluted city and forced the closure of some educational institutions.