Dhaka continuing struggle with environmental pollution
Dhaka ranked as the world’s 11th most polluted city on Thursday morning, highlighting the continuing challenge of maintaining clean air in Bangladesh’s capital despite a moderate air quality reading.
According to the Air Quality Index (AQI), Dhaka recorded a score of 94 at 08:48am, placing it among the cities with the highest levels of air pollution globally.
The AQI categorised the capital’s air quality as “Moderate”. While this level does not fall into the unhealthy category, environmental experts generally regard air pollution as a persistent concern for urban residents, particularly in a city that regularly features in global pollution rankings.
Among the cities surveyed, Indonesia’s Jakarta recorded the highest pollution level with an AQI score of 173, followed by Pakistan’s Lahore at 171 and Chile’s Santiago at 143.
The AQI is used worldwide as a daily indicator of air quality, providing information on how polluted the air is and the potential health effects associated with exposure.
Under the index, AQI values between 101 and 150 are classified as “unhealthy for sensitive groups”, while readings from 151 to 200 are considered “unhealthy”. Scores between 201 and 300 are labelled “very unhealthy”, and readings above 301 are deemed “hazardous”, signalling serious health risks.
In Bangladesh, AQI calculations are based on concentrations of five major pollutants.
Dhaka has long struggled with air pollution, a problem that typically intensifies during the dry winter months and eases during the monsoon season when rainfall helps clear pollutants from the atmosphere.
The city’s air quality remains an important public health issue because prolonged exposure to polluted air is linked to a range of serious illnesses. According to the World Health Organization, air pollution causes around seven million deaths globally every year, primarily from stroke, heart disease, chronic respiratory diseases, lung cancer and acute respiratory infections.
The latest ranking indicates that while Dhaka’s air quality was not in the unhealthy range on Thursday morning, the capital continues to face significant environmental pressures that keep it among the world’s most polluted urban centres.
