Dhaka's air 2nd worst in world today

Dhaka's air quality has been categorised as 'very unhealthy' for the residents for the fifth consecutive day.

With an air quality index (AQI) score of 288 at 8:58 am, Dhaka ranked second on the list of cities worldwide with the worst air quality.

Earlier, Dhaka's air quality was 'very unhealthy' for the last four mornings with 263, 257, 286 and 232 AQI scores on February 10, 11, 12 and 13 respectively.

Apart from this, India's Kolkata and Delhi and Pakistan's Lahore occupied the first, third and fourth positions on the list with AQI scores of 303, 273 and 217 respectively.

Notably, the air quality score between 101 and 150 is considered 'unhealthy for vulnerable groups', between 150 and 200 is considered 'unhealthy' while between 201 and 300 is considered 'very unhealthy'. The AQI score of 300+ is considered 'risky' or ‘hazardous’, which poses a serious health risk to residents.

The AQI, an index for reporting daily air quality, informs people how clean or polluted the air of a certain city is and what associated health effects might be a concern for them.

AQI in Bangladesh is determined based on five characteristics of air pollution: particulate matter (PM10 and PM2.5), NO2, CO, SO2 and Ozone (O3).

Dhaka has long been grappling with air pollution issues. Its air quality usually turns unhealthy in winter and improves during the monsoon.

According to a report prepared by the Department of Environment and the World Bank in March 2019, the three main sources of air pollution in Dhaka are brick kilns, smoke from vehicles and dust from construction sites.

According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), air pollution has increased mortality from stroke, heart disease, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, lung cancer and acute respiratory infections, causing an estimated 70 lakh deaths worldwide each year.