Overzealous air pollution officials in Uzbekistan used excavators to demolish tandoor ovens, upsetting locals, according to a Gazeta.uz report. 

As disquiet over the disproportionate action mounted, the khokim (mayor) of Shakhrikhan district in the eastern region of Andijan, Khikmatillo Dadakhonov, was reprimanded for “irresponsibility”, the local media outlet also reported on December 3.

On the day of the “strict” air pollution control raids, the local authority released video clips of enforcement action taken, including the destruction of the clay ovens, used for baking samsa, a savoury pastry stuffed with meat and vegetables. It was later deleted.

The authority said round-the-clock raids were being carried out on the orders of Andijan Region Governor Shukhrat Abdurakhmanov. Comments posted on social media suggested Mayor Dadakhonov may have gotten carried away.

Video footage showed excavators destroying tandoors in at least three establishments.

Uzbekistan has been experiencing some of the worst smog in the world in recent weeks, with the central government calling for emergency action to help cut industrial and other emissions.

One target has been greenhouse operators who burn tyres for heat. Orders have gone out instructing officials to arrange gas grid connections for greenhouses emitting toxic fumes.

Catering venues that prepare food without using smoke vents have been another target.

Inspection work in Andijan also extended to ensuring compliance in the use of gas cylinders in local markets. Some establishments were sealed shut with their cylinders confiscated. Stories of exploding cylinders are not unfamiliar in Uzbekistan.

In Tashkent and suburbs, more than 100 facilities have been shut down for pollution violations.

Saida Mirziyoyeva, head of the Presidential Administration, chaired a meeting of the Special Commission on Air Quality in Tashkent. She later joined a night inspection in Qibray district, visiting a greenhouse that burns about 150 kilograms of coal per day.