As winter approaches, Dhaka’s air quality continues to be in the 'unhealthy' zone.
With an air quality index (AQI) score of 117 at 9am on Wednesday, Dhaka ranked 26 in the list of cities around the world with the worst air quality.
Pakistan’s Lahore, India’s Kolkata and Vietnam's Hanoi occupied the first three spots, with AQI scores of 259, 189 and 188, respectively.
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An AQI between 101 and 200 is considered 'unhealthy', particularly for sensitive groups.
Similarly, an AQI between 201 and 300 is said to be 'poor', while a reading of 301 to 400 is considered 'hazardous', posing serious health risks to residents.
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AQI, an index for reporting daily air quality, is used by government agencies to inform people how clean or polluted the air of a certain city is, and what associated health effects might be a concern for them.
In Bangladesh, the AQI is based on five criteria pollutants -- Particulate Matter (PM10 and PM2.5), NO2, CO, SO2 and Ozone.