Dhaka's air quality 'moderate' Wednesday morning

Air quality in Dhaka moderate on Wednesday morning. UNB

Dhaka, June 21 -Dhaka's air quality is ‘moderate’ this morning. 

With an air quality index (AQI) score of 84 at 9:14 am, Dhaka ranked 23rd on the list of cities worldwide with the worst air quality. 

South Africa's Johannesburg, Saudi Arabia’s Riyadh and  China’s Wuhan occupied the first three spots on the list, with AQI scores of 181, 164 and 132, respectively. 

An AQI between 0 and 50 is considered to be ‘good’ while between 50 and 100 it is considered ‘moderate’. 

An AQI between 150 and 200 is considered 'unhealthy', AQI between 201 and 300 is said to be 'very unhealthy', while a reading of 301+ 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. 

Dhaka has long been grappling with air pollution issues. Its air quality usually turns unhealthy in winter and improves during the monsoon. 

Air pollution consistently ranks among the top risk factors for death and disability worldwide.

As per the World Health Organization (WHO), air pollution kills an estimated seven million people worldwide every year, largely as a result of increased mortality from stroke, heart disease, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, lung cancer and acute respiratory infections. - UNB