USA / Science shouldn't stand in way of reopening schools: White House

Washington: Seven months in the year 2020 and coornavirus pandemic has mangled most part of this year for us. If the virus isn't enough, it is the bizarre statements and half-baked information by world leaders and politicians that is sending us into tizzy.

Donald Trump, Jair Bolsonaro and many of our own politicians have given the most bizarre statements amid crushing coronavirus crisis that has gripped the world. The latest in this list is White House Press Secretary Kayleigh McEnany who actually said that science should not come in the way of reopening of schools. What should we rely on in a pandemic situation, if not science?

The virus has infected 1,38,08,626 people so far globally, while 5,89,978 people have succumbed to the infection. Several countries are easing restrictions even as the pandemic situation continues to worsen.

The World Health Organisation has also rung the alarm bells saying the situation is likely to worsen as countries are headed in a "wrong direction".

The pandemic has now killed more than half a million people in six-and-a-half months, and World Health Organization (WHO) chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said there would be no return to the “old normal” for the foreseeable future, especially if preventive measures were neglected.

“Let me be blunt, too many countries are headed in the wrong direction, the virus remains public enemy number one,” he told a virtual briefing from WHO headquarters in Geneva.