Bangladesh's capital Dhaka ranked second worst in the Air Quality Index (AQI) on Tuesday morning.

It had a score of 178 at 08:11am, indicating that the air quality was ‘unhealthy’.

A numerical value between 150 and 200 indicates that everyone may begin to experience health effects. Members of sensitive groups may experience more serious health effects.

China’s Shenyang and Beijing occupied the first and third spots respectively with scores of 188 and 166.

Scores between 201 and 300 are classified as ‘very unhealthy’. If the score is between 301 and 500, then it is classified as ‘hazardous’.

The AQI, an index for reporting daily air quality, tells people how clean or polluted the air of a certain city is, and what associated health effects might be a concern for them

Dhaka, one of the most densely populated cities in the world, has been grappling with air pollution for a long time.

The air quality generally worsens during summer and shows signs of improvement in monsoon when the dust settles.