Air Quality Index: Dhaka ranks fourth worst in the world

Bangladesh’s capital Dhaka ranked fourth worst in the Air Quality Index (AQI) on Sunday morning.
 
It had an AQI score of 145 at 08:42am.
 
Although Dhaka’s air was supposed to improve during the general holidays as public transportat remained suspended for over one month, it was classified as ‘unhealthy for sensitive groups’.

When the AQI value is between 101 and 150, members of sensitive groups may experience health effects. The general public is not likely to be affected in this situation.

Indonesia’s Jakarta, Saudi Arabia’s Riyadh and India’s Delhi occupied the first three slots in the list of cities with the worst air quality with AQI scores of 164, 157 and 153 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 (O3).
 
Dhaka has long been grappling with air pollution. Its air quality usually improves during monsoon.