ISLAMABAD: Choking smog, scorching heat and ravaging floods — arch-rivals India and Pakistan share the same environmental challenges, offering a rare but unrealised opportunity for collaboration, according to experts.
The two countries, together making up a fifth of the world’s population, frequently blame each other for smog blustering into their respective territories. But this year, pollution reached record highs in Pakistan’s eastern and most populous province of Punjab, prompting the regional government to make a rare overture calling for “regional climate diplomacy”.
India did not comment and whether they will unite to face a common foe remains to be seen, though experts agree the two countries cannot tackle climate threats in isolation.
“We are geographically, environmentally and also culturally the same people and share the same climatic challenges,” said Abid Omar, founder of the Pakistan Air Quality Initiative (PAQI).
