Dhaka's air quality remained in the 'moderate' category on Monday morning, recording an Air Quality Index (AQI) score of 68.
At 9:10am, the capital ranked 30th among the world's most polluted cities, according to the AQI.
Pakistan's Lahore topped the list with an AQI score of 168, followed by South Africa's Johannesburg at 153 and Indonesia's Jakarta at 149.
An AQI value between 50 and 100 is considered 'moderate', indicating acceptable air quality. A reading between 101 and 150 is deemed 'unhealthy for sensitive groups', while 151–200 is classified as 'unhealthy'. AQI levels between 201 and 300 are considered 'very unhealthy', and readings above 300 are categorised as 'hazardous', posing serious health risks.
The AQI is a daily index that indicates how clean or polluted the air is and the potential health effects associated with it.
In Bangladesh, the AQI is calculated based on five key pollutants: particulate matter (PM2.5 and PM10), nitrogen dioxide, carbon monoxide, sulphur dioxide and ozone.
Dhaka has long struggled with air pollution. Air quality typically deteriorates during the dry winter months and improves with the arrival of the monsoon.
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), air pollution is responsible for an estimated seven million premature deaths worldwide each year, primarily due to stroke, heart disease, chronic respiratory diseases, lung cancer and acute respiratory infections.
