As many as 19,799 children died in Maharashtra between April 2017 and March 2018 due to various reasons, including poor weight and respiratory illnesses, Health Minister Deepak Sawant has said.

The main reasons of death during the period were poor weight at the time of birth, premature delivery, contagious diseases, congenital respiratory illnesses and deformities, besides others, he said in a written reply during the recently concluded Monsoon Session of the Legislative Council in Nagpur.