Bangladesh’s capital, Dhaka, ranked 17th among the most polluted cities in the world on Monday morning, according to global air quality monitoring platform IQAir.

At 8:30 am, Dhaka recorded an Air Quality Index (AQI) score of 81, placing its air quality in the ‘moderate’ or ‘tolerable’ category under IQAir's classification.

The most polluted zone in the city on the day was Kalyanpur, followed by Madani Sarani’s Base Edgewater, the Shialbari Government Officers' Quarter in Mirpur-6, and Mohakhali, the report said.

According to IQAir's global AQI scale, 0–50 is considered good, 51–100 is moderate, 101–150 is unhealthy for sensitive groups, 151–200 is unhealthy, 201–300 is very unhealthy, and 301 and above is classified as hazardous.

Despite being in the top 20 globally for air pollution today, Dhaka’s air quality was relatively better compared to previous days, when it often ranked in the top five.

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