<div style="text-align: justify; "><span style="font-size: 1rem;">Dhaka's air quality was marked "moderate" this morning due to rain in the capital city.</span><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">With an air quality index (AQI) score of 57 at 9:06 am, Dhaka ranked 35th on the list of cities worldwide with the worst air quality.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">An AQI between 0 and 50 is considered to be “good” while between 50 and 100 it is considered “moderate”.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Pakistan’s Lahore, the United Arab Emirates’ Dubai and Malaysia’s Kuching occupied the first three spots on the list, with AQI scores of 153, 152 and 151, respectively.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">An AQI between 101 and 200 is considered “unhealthy”, particularly for sensitive groups.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Similarly, an AQI between 201 and 300 is said to be “poor'”, while a reading of 301 to 400 is considered “hazardous”, posing serious health risks to residents.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">AQI, an index for reporting daily air quality, is used by government agencies to inform people how safe or polluted the air of a certain city is, and what associated health effects might be a concern for them.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">In Bangladesh, the AQI is based on five criteria pollutants -- Particulate Matter (PM10 and PM2.5), NO2, CO, SO2 and Ozone.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Dhaka has long been grappling with air pollution issues. Its air quality usually turns unhealthy in winter and improves during the monsoon.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Air pollution consistently ranks among the top risk factors for death and disability worldwide.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">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</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify; ">bnbd24/kh</div>