New Delhi, July 30
Malnutrition is not a major cause of death among infants as a report shows that only two percent kids die of it in India, Health Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad said here Friday.
"As per the latest available data with the Registrar General of India (RGI) for 2001-03, two percent of the total infant deaths were due to malnutrition," Azad said in a written reply to the Lok Sabha.
However, he said malnutrition may "increase morbidity and mortality" by reducing resistance to infections.
According to health ministry figures, infant mortality rate has declined from 57 per 1,000 live births in 2006 to 53 per 1,000 live births in 2008.
