KARACHI, Oct 14 (Reuters) - Mosquito-borne dengue fever has killed at least 17 people in Pakistan's biggest city, Karachi, in the past four months, five of them since the beginning of October, health officials said on Saturday.

Health officials have declared a high alert in the city's hospitals after about 250 people tested positive for the disease, they said.

"We have had 17 reported deaths from the virus in various hospitals," Abdul Majid, additional secretary for health in the southern province of Sindh, told Reuters. Karachi is the provincial capital.

"It is not a panic-like situation but yes, in the last few weeks cases have been increasing on a daily basis," he said.

Opposition politicians, some aid workers and the media have criticised the city government for not anticipating the disease after the rainy season and for not carrying out proper fumigation drives.

Dengue is a disease of the tropics and is caused by a specific type of mosquito, the Aedes mosquito, that bites during the day. The mosquitoes usually breed in rain water trapped in discarded containers and car tyres.

Majid said the health department had appealed for more blood donations from the public to help treat those suffering from the disease.

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