Deteriorating air quality in Bangladesh

The air the residents breathe in three of the most industrially developed cities of the country, namely, Dhaka, Narayanganj and Gazipur, has been described as one of the most polluted in the world by the Department of Environment. What's more, Bangladesh was ranked fourth among 91 countries with worst urban air quality, according to a report published by the agency.

Experts are quick to identify the main factors behind such a high level of air pollution—industrial smog, smoke from vehicles and brick kilns, and dust from construction sites.  But a lack of vision and unbridled industrialisation, perhaps the real reason for this sorry state of air, often is not spelled out. It is sad that to look out at any city or a small town is to be greeted by a bleak sprawl of factories shoddily constructed amid residential areas, shrouded in a mantle of thick, black smoke spewed out by battered buses. It is ugliness that is on the march with no underlying design save for an even more urgent need to facilitate 'development'. What good is a growth rate of six percent if the air is unbreathable and puts people at high risks of respiratory diseases and other health problems?

Industrialisation is necessary and unavoidable. But it has to be well planned, abiding by environmental rules and regulations.

Consumption and production patterns must be sustainable as recommended in one of the SDGs. The government has, so far, not taken up any major step to check pollution, according to an expert. It should, therefore, call for greater awareness of health risks caused by air pollution, implement effective air pollution mitigation policies and regularly monitor pollution levels in these cities.