In the age of high-speed Internet communications, video games, satellite television, and multimillion-dollar Hollywood budgets, it can be hard to engage people in a discussion about air pollution. But we all, living in this beautiful earth, breathe over 11,000 liters of air each day. Children breathe more air per kilogram of body weight. The air, that we breathe to be alive, cannot be filtered like water before going inside our body. Human lung is the only filter of this invaluable air. But this priceless air, often called ambient air, is polluted due to human activities such as driving vehicles, burning of coal, oil and other fossil fuels and manufacturing of chemicals as well as many other industrial activities. Some natural phenomena such as volcanoes, windstorms, the decomposition of plants and animals, and even the aerosols emitted by the ocean "pollute" the air. Hence, when we talk about air pollution it is as a result of human activity.

Air pollution is a major environmental health problem, affecting developed and developing countries around the world. Increasing amounts of potentially harmful gases and particles are being emitted into the atmosphere on a global scale, resulting in damage to human health and the environment. It is damaging the resources needed for the long-term sustainable development of the planet.

Bangladesh is one of the most densely populated countries in the world and its urban areas suffer from air pollution of different levels and it is extremely high in Dhaka city where the population is about 12 million in around 400 km2 of surface area. It has been estimated that air pollution is causing about 15,000 premature deaths and several million cases of illness every year, in Dhaka city alone. The economic cost of this sickness and deaths is estimated to be $132 -$583 million per year for Dhaka and $200-$800 million per year for the four largest cities of Bangladesh, which is equivalent to 0.7%-3.0% of the country’s GDP per year.

This high level of air pollution and its economic cost demands a comprehensive air quality management plan to improve the air quality in Dhaka city as well as other major cities of Bangladesh. Air Quality Management Project (AQMP) is a government initiative partially funded by The World Bank to develop components of an urban air quality management system to reduce human exposure to air pollution. The key components of this development project are: improved enforcement and compliance with existing emission control regulations for both stationary and mobile sources; setting of appropriate emission standards from different sources; piloting of appropriate interventions for reducing emissions from gross polluting vehicles; better monitoring and dissemination of information; impact evaluation due to air pollution on public health; and evolving air pollution abatement strategies for major cities of the country. The objectives of this website are:

• To generate public awareness of air quality issues.
• To provide educational information on the science of air pollution.
• To provide an overview of Department of Environment’s (DoE) air quality management activities.
• To disseminate daily Air Quality Index (AQI).
• To provide information on air quality policies and regulations.
• To receive feedback from the public and different stakeholders on air quality issues.

In the following web pages, the above mentioned information can be found that will be updated regularly.