New Delhi, June 30: Madhya Pradesh has recorded the highest infant mortality rate of 48 for every 1,000 live births while Kerala has registered the lowest -- just seven, according to the latest data of the Registrar General and Census Commissioner of India.

The data showed the infant mortality rate in India has improved, albeit slightly, from 33 in 2017 to 32 in 2018. Also Read | Jharkhand Reports 60 New COVID-19 Cases Today: Live News Breaking & Coronavirus Updates on June 30, 2020.

The infant mortality rate is highest in Madhya Pradesh and stood at 48 per thousand live births in 2018 while Kerala has the lowest with just seven deaths. Bihar has the highest birth rate at 26.2 and Andaman and Nicobar Islands has a birth rate of 11.2. Chhattisgarh has the highest death rate at 8 and Delhi has a death rate of 3.3. Also Read | Maharashtra Congress Minister Nitin Raut Hits Back at Sharad Pawar For Chiding Rahul Gandhi on India-China Face-Off.

These data were released by the Registrar General and Census Commissioner in its Sample Registration System (SRS) bulletin based on information collected for 2018. The rates are calculated per 1,000 of the population.

The death rate in India has witnessed a significant decline over the last four decades from 14.9 in 1971 to 6.2 in 2018. The decline has been steeper in rural areas. In the last decade, death rate at an all-India level has declined from 7.3 to 6.2.

The corresponding decline in rural areas is 7.8 to 6.7 and in urban areas, 5.8 to 5.1. Birth rate is a crude measure of fertility of a population and a crucial determinant of population growth. India's birth rate has declined drastically over the last four decades from 36.9 in 1971 to 20.0 in 2018. The rural-urban differential has also narrowed.

However, the birth rate has continued to be higher in rural areas compared to urban areas in the last four decades. There has been about 11 per cent decline in birth rate in the last decade, from 22.5 in 2009 to 20.0 in 2018. The corresponding decline in rural areas is 24.1 to 21.6, and in urban areas, it is 18.3 to 16.7.

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