Dhaka, the overcrowded capital of Bangladesh, topped the list of cities with the worst air quality on Friday morning, recording an Air Quality Index (AQI) score of 273 at 8:25am.
The air was classified as “very unhealthy”, according to the global air quality and pollution city ranking.
An AQI reading between 151 and 200 is considered “unhealthy”, while levels between 201 and 300 are deemed “very unhealthy”. An AQI between 301 and 400 is classified as “hazardous”, posing severe health risks to residents.
China’s Shanghai and India’s Delhi ranked second and third on the list, with AQI scores of 232 and 216 respectively.
The AQI is an index used to report daily air quality, indicating how clean or polluted the air is and the potential health effects associated with exposure.
Bangladesh’s AQI is calculated based on five pollutants: particulate matter (PM10 and PM2.5), nitrogen dioxide (NO₂), carbon monoxide (CO), sulphur dioxide (SO₂), and ozone.
Dhaka has long struggled with air pollution, with air quality typically deteriorating during the winter months and improving during the monsoon season.
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), air pollution causes an estimated seven million deaths worldwide each year, primarily due to increased mortality from stroke, heart disease, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, lung cancer, and acute respiratory infections.