Dhaka’s air ‘very unhealthy’ today, yet another city surpasses it

Air pollution in Dhaka continues to worsen. This morning, Tuesday, Dhaka ranked fourth among 127 cities across the world in terms of air pollution. Around 8:30 am, the city’s Air Quality Index (AQI) was recorded at 221, a level considered unhealthy.

However, the air pollution in Khulna, another divisional city, was even worse than in the capital.

The data was reported by IQAir, a Switzerland-based organisation that regularly monitors and reports on air quality across the world. Its live or real-time air quality index informs and alerts people about how clean or polluted the air is in a particular city.

Like Monday, Delhi in India topped the global pollution chart today with an AQI score of 744, followed by Lahore in Pakistan with 463.

Air quality is deteriorating across the country, including the capital. On some days, cities outside Dhaka even surpass the capital in terms of pollution levels.

This morning, the air quality in the coastal-region city of Khulna stood at 244, far worse than in Dhaka. This is despite Khulna having a much smaller population, fewer industries, and fewer vehicles than the capital.

Among other divisional cities of the country, the AQI was recorded at 174 in Rajshahi, 167 in Rangpur, 161 in Mymensingh, 142 in both Barishal and Sylhet, and 116 in Chattogram.

Air pollution was particularly severe today in six areas of the capital. Among them, the icddr,b campus recorded an AQI of 262, Eastern Housing in Mirpur 247, South Pallabi 237, Kallyanpur 227, Becharam Deuri 221, and Bay’s Edgewater in Gulshan recorded 219.

Given today’s air quality in the capital, everyone should wear a mask when going outdoors. Avoid exercising in open spaces, and keep windows closed to reduce exposure to polluted air.