Indian capital's dangerous air ruins return to school as pandemic curbs eased

FILE PHOTO: A couple poses during a pre-wedding photo shoot near India's Presidential Palace which is shrouded in smog, in New Delhi, India, November 5, 2021. REUTERS/Anushree Fadnavis

NEW DELHI (Reuters) - A toxic smog shrouding New Delhi persuaded many students to stay home rather return to schools that reopened on Monday as authorities eased restrictions imposed when the COVID-19 pandemic first struck India in March last year.

"The pollution in Delhi is hazardous. We as parents are afraid of sending our children to school," Kamlesh Sharma, one of the parents wrote on Twitter.