The government today admitted that the rate of child mortality in the age group of one to five among the tribal is relatively high in the country. The Health and Family Welfare Minister Mr. Ghulam Nabi Azad informed in the Lok Sabha in a written reply that the main reasons for higher mortality among the tribal children are poverty, mal-nutrition and lack of adequate access to health care. He also outlined a number of programmes to address the causes leading to child mortality and improving the health of children. According to the official figures, child mortality rate in 2008 was the highest in Madhya Pradesh followed by Uttar Pradesh, Assam, Orissa, Rajasthan, Chattisgarh and Bihar. The child mortality rate was lowest in Jammu and Kashmir.