Dhaka is world’s second most polluted city

Staff Reporter :
Dhaka’s air quality ranked second in the list of world cities with the worst air quality on Friday as the quality deteriorated again.
The overpopulated metropolis air quality index (AQI) scored 178 at 9am on Friday.
An AQI between 101 and 200 is considered ‘unhealthy’, particularly for sensitive groups.
The United Arab Emirate’s Dubai and Vietnam’s Hanoi occupied the first and third spots in the list, with AQI scores 188, and 164, respectively.
Air quality index between 50 and 100 is considered ‘moderate’ with an acceptable air quality.
On the other hand, there may be a moderate health concern for a very small number of people who are unusually sensitive to air pollution.
Similarly, an AQI between 201 and 300 is said to be ‘poor’, while the index to be 301 to 400 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. The capital city has been grappling with rough air quality for long.
Its air quality usually turns unhealthy in winter and improves during the rainy season. According to public health experts, air pollution consistently ranks among the high risk factors for death and disability across the planet.
Several studies worldwide showed that breathing polluted air has long been recognised as increasing a person’s chances of developing a heart disease, cancer, chronic respiratory diseases and lung infections.
World Health Organization (WHO) said that air pollution kills an estimated seven million people across the globe every year.
A large portion of those are a result of increased mortality from stroke, heart disease, lung cancer, acute respiratory infections and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.