Indian External Affairs Minister Dr S Jaishankar on Saturday (January 20, 2024) said Bangladesh-India relations are growing from strength to strength. "Look forward to receiving him (Dr Hasan Mahmud) in Delhi soon," he said as he met his Bangladesh counterpart Dr Hasan Mahmud on the sidelines of the 19th NAM Summit. Jaishankar said he is glad to meet with his new Bangladesh counterpart, Hasan Mahmud in Kampala, Uganda. "Congratulated him on his appointment and wished him all success," said the Indian External Affairs Minister. Both the ministers discussed various issues of mutual interests and ways to carry forward the existing excellent bilateral relations between the two countries, said the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. They also discussed the upcoming visit of Bangladesh Foreign Minister to New Delhi. Hasan Mahmud led the Bangladesh delegation to the 19th Summit of the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) held on January 19-20. He will also lead the third South Summit of the G77 and China scheduled to be held on January 21-22. Read more: Every country should take its responsibilities towards refugees very seriously: David Cameron Foreign Secretary Masud Bin Momen, Bangladesh Permanent Representative to the UN Muhammad A Muhith and Bangladesh High Commissioner to Kenya and Uganda, among others, are accompanying the Foreign Minister. Foreign Minister Hasan Mahmud is scheduled to leave for New Delhi, India on February 7 – the first bilateral visit by the minister after his appointment – to further strengthen Bangladesh-India relations. “It’s likely to be a three-day visit,” he told reporters at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on January 18, noting that the agenda of the visit is yet to be finalised. The Foreign Minister said he will be visiting the country at the invitation of Indian External Affairs Minister Dr S Jaishankar. Asked whether he will have a meeting with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi during the visit, Mahmud said, “It is too early to say.” Jaishankar, earlier, invited his Bangladesh counterpart Dr Hasan Mahmud to visit New Delhi at a mutually convenient time. Indian High Commissioner to Bangladesh Pranay Verma extended the invitation on behalf of the Indian External Affairs Minister on Monday. The Foreign Minister accepted the invitation and told him that he would visit Delhi soon. Read more: FM Hasan meets his Palestinian counterpart

Dhaka’s air was ranked 5th most polluted among cities around the world this morning (August 14, 2023), according to the Air Quality Index (AQI). The air in Dhaka city was categorised as ‘unhealthy for sensitive groups’, with an AQI score of 136 at 8:30 am. Uganda’s Kampala, United Arab Emirates’ Dubai, Kuwait’s Kuwait City and Indonesia’s Jakarta occupied the first four spots on the list, with AQI scores of 162, 159, 157 and 152 respectively. Read: Thanks to rain, Dhaka's air quality 'moderate' this morning When the AQI value for particle pollution is between 101 and 150, air quality is considered ‘unhealthy for sensitive groups’, between 150 and 200 is ‘unhealthy’, between 201 and 300 is said to be 'very unhealthy', while a reading of 301+ is considered 'hazardous', posing serious health risks to residents. In Bangladesh, the AQI is based on five criteria pollutants — particulate matter (PM10 and PM2.5), NO2, CO, SO2, and Ozone. Dhaka has long been grappling with air pollution issues. Its air quality usually turns unhealthy in winter and improves during the monsoon. Read: Dhaka’s air unhealthy for sensitive groups this morning Air pollution consistently ranks among the top risk factors for death and disability worldwide. As per the World Health Organization (WHO), air pollution kills an estimated seven million people worldwide every year, largely due to increased mortality from stroke, heart disease, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, lung cancer, and acute respiratory infections. Read more: Dhaka’s air 3rd most polluted in the world this morning