Dhaka has ranked at the top of the list of cities worldwide with the worst air quality, recording an AQI score of 203 at 9:01 am today. The air quality in Dhaka was classified as 'very unhealthy' according to the air quality and pollution city ranking.

An AQI between 151 and 200 is considered 'unhealthy', while 201-300 is classified as 'very unhealthy', and 301-400 is deemed 'hazardous', posing severe health risks to residents. Pakistan's Lahore, Indonesia's Jakarta, and Nepal's Kathmandu occupied the second, third, and fourth spots on the list, with AQI scores of 170, 167, and 150, respectively.

The AQI serves as an index for reporting daily air quality, providing information to people about how clean or polluted the air of a certain city is and what health effects might be a concern.

In Bangladesh, the AQI is based on five pollutants: particulate matter (PM10 and PM2.5), NO2, CO, SO2, and ozone. Dhaka has been grappling with air pollution issues for a long time, with its air quality typically deteriorating in winter and improving during the monsoon season.

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), air pollution is responsible for an estimated seven million deaths worldwide every year, primarily due to increased mortality from stroke, heart disease, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, lung cancer, and acute respiratory infections.