Published : 15 Oct 2026 12:59 PM | Updated : 15 Oct 2026 01:00 PM
Dhaka ranked 26th among the world's most polluted cities on Thursday morning, recording an Air Quality Index (AQI) score of 105 at 11:05 am.
According to the AQI scale, the city's air quality was classified as “Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups”, poses health risks to children, older adults, and people with heart or lung diseases, while the general public is mostly unaffected.
Singapore in Singapore ranked first with an AQI score of 220, while Kuala Lumpur in Malaysia ranked second with a score of 214, followed by Medan in Indonesia third place with an AQI score of 181.
According to AQI standards, a reading between 101 and 150 is considered 'unhealthy for sensitive groups', while 151 to 200 is classified as 'unhealthy'. A reading between 201 and 300 is considered 'very unhealthy', while levels above 301 are deemed 'hazardous', posing serious health risks.
The AQI provides daily updates on air quality, indicating how clean or polluted the air is and highlighting potential health impacts.
In Bangladesh, the AQI is calculated based on five major pollutants: particulate matter (PM10 and PM2.5), nitrogen dioxide (NO2), carbon monoxide (CO), sulfur dioxide (SO2) and ozone.
Dhaka has long struggled with air pollution, with air quality typically deteriorating during winter and improving during the monsoon season.
The World Health Organization estimates that air pollution causes around seven million deaths globally each year, mainly from stroke, heart disease, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, lung cancer and acute respiratory infections, reports UNB.