New Delhi, Ramadan 15, 1435, July 12, 2014, SPA -- Seven newborn babies have died during a 24-hour period in a state-run hospital with a history of infant deaths in India's eastern West Bengal state, dpa quoted a hospital official as saying Saturday. All seven were underweight and suffered from malnutrition, though some also had respiratory infections, the Malda Medical College and Hospital Vice Principal MA Rashid said. Several of the infants had been transferred from smaller hospitals in the region. The hospital, located about 300 kilometers north of West Bengal capital Kolkata, saw 23 newborns die of suspected encephalitis last month and more than 60 die in 2011. India's infant mortality rate in 2012 - 44 deaths for every 1000 deaths - was 25 per cent higher than the world average of 35 that year, according to World Bank data. -- SPA 15:44 LOCAL TIME 12:44 GMT www.spa.gov.sa/w