Dhaka, March 13 -- The 2024 World Air Quality Report by Swiss-based IQAir has identified Bangladesh along with Chad as the most polluted countries, with Delhi, India, ranking as the most polluted capital. However, only seven nations worldwide met the WHO's air quality standards, while pollution levels in Africa remain largely under-reported.

The report also highlighted how environmental monitoring was affected by budget cuts and policy changes under former U.S. President Donald Trump, with the shutdown of air quality monitoring at American embassies and the removal of 17 years' worth of data from the U.S. government's airnow.gov database.

The report, which examined nearly 9,000 cities, found that only 17 per cent adhered to the WHO's st...