Dhaka, March 29 -- In a poignant revelation, the World Bank unveiled a sobering report on Thursday, highlighting Bangladesh's stark reality of grappling with alarming levels of pollution and environmental health hazards.

These afflictions disproportionately afflict society's most vulnerable segments: the impoverished, tender children under 5, venerable elders, and women.

This disconcerting narrative unfolds against a backdrop where air pollution, precarious water conditions, and insidious lead exposure converge to claim a staggering toll of over 272,000 lives prematurely each year, as articulated in a newly minted report by the World Bank.

This comprehensive study, encapsulated in the Bangladesh Country Environmental Analysis, unveils ...