Sargodha AQI Today: Check Punjab EPA's Reading for Sargodha, Khushab, Mianwali and Bhakkar, Free (7 November: 120)

Sargodha has had some of the calmer readings in central Punjab this week. At 5 pm on 7 November it ranked 25th of 33 cities, with an AQI of 120. The other three cities of Sargodha division, Khushab, Mianwali and Bhakkar, did not all share that luck. Bhakkar read 311 before dawn the same day. We read every figure on Punjab EPA's dashboard ourselves.

A Moderate reading is still not clean air. Punjab EPA's advice at 101 to 150 is to check the AQI before outdoor plans, and for vulnerable people to cut back on time outside.

Sargodha's AQI at 5 pm on 7 November 2026 was 120

Punjab EPA's dashboard showed Sargodha at 120 in its 5 pm reading on 7 November. That sits in the Moderate band on Punjab's seven band scale. Before dawn the same day, at 3 am, Sargodha had read 126, in the Moderate band.

Sargodha was close to Mianwali at 122, while Khushab at 154 and Bhakkar at 178 were in the band for sensitive groups. Lahore read 148 at the same hour, so on Saturday afternoon Sargodha's air was slightly better than Lahore's.

The dashboard lists Sargodha in its city ranking only. It names monitoring stations and gives PM2.5 and PM10 figures for Lahore alone, so we cannot tell you which part of Sargodha the reading comes from or how many monitors sit behind it.

Check Sargodha's AQI on the Punjab EPA dashboard in five steps

Open aqi.punjab.gov.pk in any phone browser. It is free and needs no login or app. The page opens on Lahore, then ranks every Punjab city by AQI. Find Sargodha in that list and read the update time beside it.

1. Open aqi.punjab.gov.pk and look for the "Last updated" time.
2. Scroll to the city ranking under Current AQI and find Sargodha.
3. Read the number, then match it to a band in the table further down.
4. Use "Select District" under the trends section and pick Sargodha to see its last 24 hours.
5. Open the health advisory page and read the advice for your band.

The same page has a "Set AQI Alert" box with Sargodha in its district list, and it asks your browser for permission to send notifications. We did not switch alerts on for this check, so we cannot say how often they arrive. If another app shows a different number, our guide to Punjab's AQI levels explains why labels can differ between scales.

Sargodha and nearby cities read from 120 to 178

At 5 pm on 7 November, Bhakkar was the worst of Sargodha division at 178 and Sargodha the best at 120. At 3 am the gap had been much bigger. Bhakkar read 311, in the Very Unhealthy band, while Sargodha read 126.

Bhakkar sits in the Thal, south-west of the other three, and its readings behaved differently from its neighbours all week. If you travel from Sargodha to Bhakkar or Mianwali, check the city you are going to, not the one you are leaving.

Sargodha's readings this week swung from 106 to 210

We read the same dashboard five times between 4 and 7 November. Sargodha's figure moved a lot between those readings, and the time of day explains most of the swing. Pre-dawn readings were the highest in most cities, and afternoon readings the lowest.

Sargodha's own range was 106 to 210, much narrower than most of south Punjab. Bhakkar moved from 115 on 5 November to 311 on 7 November. Mianwali stayed between 94 and 172, the steadiest of the four, and was in the Satisfactory band at 2 pm on 6 November.

Our rule is simple. If the number jumps sharply from the last one, look again an hour later and glance at the nearby cities. If they are all high, the air is probably bad. If one city alone looks strange, wait for the next reading.

What Punjab EPA tells you to do at each AQI band

Punjab EPA's advice follows the band, so check the band first. Above 200, everyone should wear a mask outdoors and avoid heavy or long effort outside. Above 400, everyone should stay indoors. Vulnerable people should take care at much lower readings.

• Keep doors and windows shut on high readings.
• Wear a well-fitted N95 or KN95 mask outdoors in the Unhealthy band or worse.
• Move errands you can to the afternoon, when this week's readings were lowest.
• Report burning and smoky kilns on the Green Punjab app, and farmers should know the crop burning fine.

Vulnerable people are children, older people, pregnant women and anyone with asthma, COPD or heart disease. See a doctor if a child breathes fast, or anyone has chest tightness, wheezing or a cough that will not settle. If someone has chest pain or cannot breathe, go to the nearest emergency department at once.

Common questions

Where can I check Sargodha's AQI today?

On Punjab EPA's official dashboard, aqi.punjab.gov.pk. It is free, updates every hour and lists Sargodha in its city ranking.

What was Sargodha's AQI on 7 November 2026?

126 at 3 am and 120 at 5 pm. The first is Moderate and the second Moderate on Punjab's scale.

Is Sargodha's air better than Lahore's?

At both readings on 7 November it was: 126 against 345 at 3 am, and 120 against 148 at 5 pm.

Which city in Sargodha division had the worst air on 7 November?

Bhakkar, at both readings. It read 311 at 3 am and 178 at 5 pm.

Does Punjab EPA show station readings for Sargodha?

Not on the page we read. It gives station names, PM2.5 and PM10 for Lahore only. Sargodha appears as one city figure in the ranking.

Are schools in Sargodha closed for smog?

We found no November 2026 closure order on the official pages we checked on 7 November. Our guide on smog school closures lists where orders appear. Monday 9 November is a public holiday for Iqbal Day anyway.

Is there a helpline for air quality complaints in Sargodha?

Punjab EPA's home page lists a complaints WhatsApp number, 0335-9232227, and the Green Punjab app for complaints about burning, kilns, factories and smoky vehicles. Both cover all of Punjab.

How we verified this

What we checked, where we read it, and what we could not confirm.

Last checked at 5 pm on 7 November 2026 on the Punjab EPA air quality dashboard. Band advice is from its health advisory page. Earlier figures are from our own dated readings of the same dashboard, including our evening report for 7 November. These are one-hour readings and they change every hour.