Air Quality Index: Dhaka’s air ‘very unhealthy’

NEWS DESK

Although air pollution falls in major cities across the globe during coronavirus lockdowns Dhaka again ranked worst in the Air Quality Index (AQI) on Thursday morning.

The capital ranked the worst in the Air Quality Index (AQI) with a score of 227 at 08:34 am. The air was classified as ‘very unhealthy’.

When the AQI value is between 201 and 300, everyone may begin to experience more serious health effects.

China’s Beijing and Afghanistan’s Kabul occupied the first and second spots in the list of cities with worst air with scores of 170 and 157 respectively.

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.

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. Its air quality usually improves during monsoon.

Bangladesh has shut down educational institutions, mass transport, and non-essential services and restricted the movement of people and vehicles to tackle the spread of coronavirus.

People have been asked to stay indoors.