Coronavirus won't disappear like the flu in summer: WHO

Banking on coronavirus disappearing like the flu in the summer is a 'false hope', WHO says as worldwide cases approach 1,20,000.

The World Health Organisation has warned governments that hoping for the coronavirus to diseappear like the flu is a 'false hope' and that the virus is not seasonal.

Mike Ryan, executive director of WHO's health emergencies program, said: "We have to assume the virus has the capacity to spread. It is a false hope to think that it will disappear like the flu in the summer".

"We hope it does. That would be a godsend. But we can't make that assumption as there is no evidence", he added.

The virus, which originated in China's Wuhan province last year, has since spread to every continent in the world, with over 1,20,000 infected and at least 4,200 dead.

In India, the virus has affected at least 62 people, with four reported from Karnataka's capital, Bengaluru. The highest number of cases in India is in Kerala, with at least 14 confirmed patients of the disease.

Recently, Italy became the worst-hit region in the world after china, with over 10,000 infected and 630 dead. The entire country has been put on lockdown, isolating over 60 million people.

The disease has thrown a damp towel across the world, with many technical and business events either delayed or cancelled outright. The 2020 Summer Olympics, to be held in Tokyo, is also reportedly under threat as Japan has registered over 1,200 cases, according to public broadcaster NHK.

At home, the 2020 IPL season is also facing the cloud of the disease, with Maharashtra confirming that it is in talks to delay the series, which could blow into a cancellation if other states follow. A plea has also been filed in the Madras High Court to seek the stopping of the IPL season.

Many world leaders are hoping that the disease will be impacted by the oncoming summer.