Dhaka's air 5th worst polluted in the world Wednesday

Air pollution

Dhaka, Nov 23 --Air pollution still remains one of the top-most challenges for Bangladesh and Dhaka was ranked the fifth most polluted city in the world with ‘unhealthy’ air quality on Wednesday morning.

Dhaka’s air quality index (AQI) score was 196 at 9.15 am on Wednesday.

An AQI between 201 and 300 is said to be ‘very unhealthy’, while a reading of 301 to 400 is considered 'hazardous', posing serious health risks to residents.

Pakistan’s Lahore, Iraq's Baghdad and India’s Delhi occupied the first and third spots in the list, with AQI scores of 306, 255 and 223, respectively.

An AQI between 101 and 200 is considered 'unhealthy', particularly for sensitive groups.

In Bangladesh, the AQI is based on five criteria pollutants -- Particulate Matter (PM10 and PM2.5), NO2, CO, SO2 and Ozone. - UNB