3 cities overtake Dhaka in air pollution

The Respiratory Medicine Department at Mymensingh Medical College Hospital has 37 beds, but on Monday, more than 90 patients were receiving treatment there. Many had to be accommodated on the floor due to a severe shortage of space.

Head of the department, Anisur Rahman, told Prothom Alo on Monday, “We are forced to keep two patients in a single bed due to the lack of space. The number of respiratory patients is increasing daily, largely due to rising pollution in the city.”

The department treats patients two days a week, and this month alone, over 500 patients have sought medical attention, according to hospital sources.

Mymensingh’s air pollution levels have surpassed Dhaka’s this month (as of 23 March), making it one of the most polluted cities in Bangladesh.

Traditionally, Dhaka records the highest pollution levels, but this month, Rajshahi, Rangpur, and Mymensingh have reported even worse air quality, with Rajshahi ranking as the most polluted among them.

The data comes from the Department of Environment, whose Director of Air Quality Management, Ziaul Haque, stated, “We are noticing a rise in pollution outside Dhaka. We have some assumptions about why this is happening, but it remains a major concern.”

Several organisations track air pollution across the country, including Swiss-based IQAir and the US government’s Air Now. Alongside these international sources, the Department of Environment also publishes daily air quality updates on its website.

The department monitors key pollutants such as fine particulate matter (PM2.5), sulfur oxides, carbon monoxide, nitrogen dioxide, and ozone through 31 monitoring stations nationwide. While most organisations focus solely on PM2.5 levels, the Department of Environment takes a more comprehensive approach to air quality monitoring.

According to the Department of Environment, air quality is considered “good” when the index is between 0 and 51. It is classified as “moderate” when it ranges from 51 to 100. Air quality is deemed “harmful to sensitive groups” if the index falls between 151 and 200.

A level between 201 and 300 is considered “very unhealthy,” and any value exceeding 300 is classified as “disastrous.”

Based on these classifications, residents of Dhaka, Mymensingh, Rajshahi, and Rangpur did not experience clean air on a single day in March 2023.

The Department of Environment reported air pollution levels for 19 out of the first 23 days of the month, excluding four days.

Among the four cities, Rajshahi recorded the highest average pollution level at 203, followed by Mymensingh at 198. Rangpur, another northern city, had an average value of 187, while Dhaka had the lowest among them at 178.

The highest daily pollution level was recorded in Rangpur on 12 March, reaching 323. The second highest was also in Rangpur on 11 March, with a value of 309. The third highest was in Rajshahi on 1 March, where the pollution index reached 303.

When you walk through the streets of Mymensingh town, a common sight greets you - dustbins overflowing with garbage on the roadsides. It is evident that the city authorities are not very active in waste management.

Additionally, dust from ongoing construction projects blankets the surroundings, yet there are hardly any efforts to address the issue.

In Rangpur’s suburbs, numerous brick kilns operate with little to no pollution control, significantly degrading air quality.

Despite having fewer pollution sources - such as vehicles, factories, waste burning, and brick kilns - compared to the capital, divisional cities still experience high levels of pollution. Why is that?

Abdus Salam, a professor in the Department of Chemistry at Dhaka University, explains: “Rapid urbanisation is taking place, and the same pollutants found in the capital are now present in other cities as well. Among the local sources, we can identify brick kilns, rice mills, and unplanned construction in Rajshahi and Rangpur.”

A significant contributor to Bangladesh’s air pollution is cross-border air pollution. Polluted air from regions like Haryana and Delhi in India, as well as Lahore in Pakistan, flows into Bangladesh. The northwestern district of Rangpur serves as a key entry point for this polluted air.

Professor Salam believes that while cross-border pollution affects Rajshahi and Rangpur, local pollution sources also play a major role.

However, he warns that blaming cross-border air pollution has led to the neglect of local pollution control.

He emphasises that the Department of Environment and other responsible authorities cannot evade accountability for managing local pollution sources.

[Correspondents, Rangpur and Mymensingh assisted filling this report]

*This report, originally published in Prothom Alo print and online edition, has been rewritten for English edition by Farjana Liakat