Child mortality rates in India are the highest in tribal areas with figures exceeding the national average, according to a World Bank report titled, 'Child Mortality among Adivasis in India'.

Replying to a written question in the Rajya Sabha as to whether the government was aware of the report, minister of state for health Dinesh Trivedi replied in the affirmative.

He said child mortality can be attributed to a number of causes. The top causes of deaths among children between 0 to 4 years are prenatal conditions (33 per cent), respiratory infections (22 per cent), diarrhoeal diseases (14 per cent), other infections (11 per cent), nutritional deficiencies (2.8 per cent) and congenital anomalies (2.7 per cent).

The government was taking steps through the National Rural Health Mission to address the problem, he said.