Dbarta24 Desk – Driven by the relentless impacts of climate change and ongoing massive infrastructure development, air pollution levels continue to escalate across major global metropolises.
In the latest global air quality assessments, Bangladesh’s megacity, Dhaka, has ranked as the fifth most polluted city in the world.
According to data released on Wednesday (July 29) by IQAir, a Switzerland-based air quality monitoring organization, Dhaka recorded an Air Quality Index (AQI) score of 113.
Under the standardized air quality parameters, an AQI score within this range flags the air as “unhealthy for sensitive groups,” signaling impending health risks for vulnerable populations.
Global Pollution Leaderboard
The Democratic Republic of Congo’s capital, Kinshasa, topped the hazardous list on Wednesday morning, registering a deeply concerning AQI score of 168, which is classified as outright “unhealthy” for all residents.
The top five most polluted cities globally on Wednesday morning included:
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Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo – AQI 168
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Dubai, United Arab Emirates – AQI 154
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Jakarta, Indonesia – AQI 152
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Jerusalem, Israel – AQI 114
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Dhaka, Bangladesh – AQI 113
Understanding the Metrics: What the Scores Mean
The IQAir index operates on a strict scale to determine the safety levels of the air breathed by urban populations worldwide:
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0 to 50: Classified as ‘Good’.
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51 to 100: Classified as ‘Moderate’.
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101 to 150: Deemed ‘Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups’ (Dhaka’s current tier).
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151 to 200: Classified as ‘Unhealthy’ (Kinshasa, Dubai, and Jakarta fall here).
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201 to 300: Marked as ‘Very Unhealthy’. At this stage, experts strongly advise children, the elderly, and individuals with pre-existing medical conditions to remain indoors, while others are urged to severely restrict outdoor activities.
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301 to 400+: Categorized as ‘Hazardous’, posing extreme and immediate health emergencies for the entire population of a city.
Dhaka’s consistent presence among the world’s most polluted cities underscores an urgent need for sustainable urban planning and stricter dust control measures across development projects.
As the air quality hovers in a zone that threatens children, the elderly, and respiratory patients, environmental analysts stress that immediate, actionable policy implementations are mandatory to protect public health.