Coal mine deaths dropped 15.1 percent in 2008 compared to the previous year, the official Xinhua news agency late on Tuesday quoted the country's State Administration of Work Safety as saying.

The report made no mention of the actual number of deaths in 2008, but Xinhua said at the beginning of last year that 3,786 miners lost their lives in 2007 -- a 15.1 percent drop from 3,786 equates to 3,214.

However independent labour groups have long maintained that China's mining death toll is much higher than the government says as local mine bosses and regional leaders cover up accidents to avoid fines and costly mine shut downs.

Government figures also show that almost 80 percent of the nation's 16,000 mines are illegal, according to Xinhua.

China saw the death rate per one million tonnes of coal production fall from 4.94 in 2002 to 1.18 last year, according to an online statement from the work safety administration.

Authorities also closed down 1,054 small coal mines in 2008, the statement said.

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