- Murtaza Wahab says dog bite cases rising in Karachi.
- Majority supports immediate culling campaign: mayor.
- Mayor opposes neutering as slow solution for issue.
Karachi Mayor Barrister Murtaza Wahab on Wednesday called for culling stray dogs, opposing neutering as a slow solution, as authorities and hospitals reported a sharp rise in dog bite cases.
His comments come as data showed over 800 dog bite cases in Karachi during the first five days of 2026.
Speaking to reporters, the Karachi mayor said that immediate action to curb rising cases required killing stray dogs.
“Neutering would take time. Dog bite cases are increasing in the city,” he said, adding that a small group opposed to culling repeatedly approached courts to obtain stay orders.
The Karachi mayor noted that the majority supported immediate action and called for a final, decisive resolution.
Officials have said that around 850 cases were reported in Karachi during the first five days of the year alone, with Indus Hospital and Civil Hospital reporting 300 cases each, while Jinnah Hospital logged over 250 cases.
Dr Aftab Gohar, in charge of the dog bite clinic at Indus Hospital, said a 41-year-old man had to have a finger amputated due to severe tissue damage and disrupted blood flow due to a dog bite.
He added that most cases were reported from Korangi, Hub Chowki, Baldia Town, Landhi and Gadap Town.
Dr Gohar said that all patients were given anti-rabies vaccines at the Indus Hospital.
However, he said that rabies is almost always fatal once its symptoms appear in the affected individual.
The issue has also drawn political criticism as Jamaat-e-Islami Karachi Emir Munim Zafar assailed the Karachi mayor over dog bites, and deaths from open manholes and sewage in the city.
He said that Muttahida Qaumi Movement had also contributed to Karachi’s decline over decades, alleging the party of playing from “both sides of the wicket”.
Last month, a boy from Jacobabad died of rabies at the Indus Hospital after being bitten by a stray dog two months earlier.
The death, reported on December 24, 2025, brought the number of rabies-related fatalities in Sindh last year to more than 21.
