Dhaka: The densely populated capital of Bangladesh, Dhaka, ranked 5th among the world’s most polluted cities on Monday morning, recording an Air Quality Index (AQI) of 141 at 08:55 am. Today’s air was classified as ‘unhealthy for sensitive groups’, indicating a health threat, according to the AQI index.
According to United News of Bangladesh, Thailand’s Chiang Mai, Myanmar’s Yangon, and India’s Delhi occupied the first three spots on the list, with AQI scores of 233, 186, and 183, respectively. The AQI levels range with 101-150 being ‘unhealthy for sensitive groups’, 151-200 as ‘unhealthy’, 201-300 as ‘very unhealthy’, and readings above 301 considered ‘hazardous’, posing severe health risks.
The AQI, which reports daily air quality, informs residents about how clean or polluted the air is and highlights potential health effects. In Bangladesh, the AQI is calculated based on five key pollutants: particulate matter (PM10 and PM2.5), nitrogen dioxide (NO2), carbon monoxide (CO), sulfur dioxide (SO2), and ozon
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Dhaka has long struggled with air pollution. Air quality usually deteriorates in winter and improves during the monsoon season. The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that air pollution causes about seven million deaths worldwide each year, primarily from stroke, heart disease, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, lung cancer, and acute respiratory infections.