Dhaka, May 7 -- Dhaka ranked first among the world's most polluted cities on Thursday morning, recording an Air Quality Index (AQI) of 181 at 08:58 am.

The air quality was classified as 'unhealthy', indicating the air contains dangerous levels of pollutants, according to the AQI scale.

Lahore in Pakistan, Kolkata in India and Jakarta in Indonesia occupied the top three spots, with AQI scores of 156, 135 and 127 respectively.

According to AQI standards, a reading between 101 and 150 is considered 'unhealthy for sensitive groups', 151 to 200 'unhealthy', 201 to 300 'very unhealthy', while levels above 301 are deemed 'hazardous', posing serious health risks.

The AQI, which provides daily updates on air quality, indicates how clean or pol...