Dhaka, the overcrowded capital of Bangladesh, has the world’s sixth worst air quality with an AQI score of 186 at 8:24 am on Thursday.
The air quality this morning was classified as “unhealthy”, indicating a severe health threat, according to the AQI index.
An AQI value for particle pollution between 50 and 100 is considered “moderate”, where sensitive individuals should limit prolonged outdoor exertion. An AQI between 101 and 150 is classified as “unhealthy for sensitive groups”, while values between 150 and 200 are “unhealthy”.
An AQI between 201 and 300 is considered “very unhealthy”, and a reading above 301 is considered “hazardous”, posing serious health risks to residents.
India’s Delhi, Pakistan’s Lahore, and Uganda’s Kampala ranked first, second, and third, respectively, with AQI scores of 287, 203, and 190.
The AQI is an index used to report daily air quality, informing the public of how clean or polluted the air is in a particular city and the associated health effects.
In Bangladesh, the AQI is based on five pollutants: particulate matter (PM10 and PM2.5), NO2, CO, SO2, and ozone.
Dhaka has long struggled with air pollution, which worsens in the winter and improves during the monsoon season.
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), air pollution is responsible for an estimated seven million deaths worldwide every year, primarily due to increased mortality from stroke, heart disease, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, lung cancer, and acute respiratory infections.
Source: UNB
Bd-pratidin English/Fariha Nowshin Chinika
