Karachi , Pakistan ( CNN ) -- At a morgue in Pakistan 's largest city , five linen pouches -- each the size of a loaf of bread -- line the shelf of a walk-in freezer . Wrapped inside each small sack is the corpse of an infant . The babies are victims of what one relief agency calls Pakistan 's worst unfolding tragedy : the killing and dumping of newborns . `` Sometimes they hang them , and sometimes they kill by the knife , and sometimes we find bodies which have been burned , '' said Anwar Kazmi , a manager at Edhi Foundation , Pakistan 's largest privately run social service and relief agency . Records at Edhi Foundation show that more than 1,200 newborns were killed and dumped in Pakistan last year , an increase of about 200 from the previous year . Families view many of these children as illegitimate in a culture that condemns those born outside of marriage . Statistics show that roughly nine out of 10 are baby girls , which families may consider too costly to keep in a country where women frequently are not allowed to work . The babies are usually just days old . Their corpses are often dumped in Karachi 's sprawling garbage dumps , where they 're sometimes mutilated by street animals , Kazmi said . He estimates that hundreds of baby corpses are never found . The head of Edhi Foundation , 83-year-old Abdul Sattar Edhi , blames Pakistan 's crippling poverty and a government that , for decades , has failed to educate the masses , generate jobs and provide citizens with the most basic needs . `` The distribution of resources by the government is wrong , '' Edhi said . `` Many people do n't pay taxes ; there 's no charity , and what you get from the government is all based on your wealth . '' The Pakistani government has said it 's improving education , but 55 million Pakistanis remain illiterate , according to the United Nations . And the government is billions of dollars in debt while entangled in a costly fight against the Taliban and other Islamic militant groups . The killing of newborns gets little attention in Pakistan , and rarely are they investigated by a police force that 's often poorly trained , lacks resources and stays focused on what 's perceived to be more important crimes . In many parts of the world , female infanticide is still practiced through direct violence but also by intentional neglect , according to the World Health Organization . In some Asian countries , infanticide of girls is enough to skew the population figures in favor of males . The United Nations found , for example , that there are 130 boys to 100 girls in parts of Asia , especially in countries with extreme poverty and overpopulation such as China and India . `` Girls are seen as a burden , seen as a property which belongs to somebody else so people see that as a waste of money and the wasting of an education of a girl , '' said Bhagyashri Dengle , executive director of Plan India , a nonprofit for children . `` Then when the girl gets married , the families have a big , heavy dowry . So that is one of the reasons here . '' Dengle said awareness and education at the grass-roots level are ways to combat this practice . `` I think we really need to reach out to young people ( to ) create an awareness , to change attitudes and dispel the notion that having a boy is better than a girl , '' she said . `` We launched this program 'Let Girls Be Born ' -- that campaign is reaching out to masses using televisions , through newspapers and through ( the ) Internet . What we are trying to do is positive messaging on the girls . That girls are n't a sect ; they are as good as boys . '' In Pakistan , until things improve , the Edhi Foundation said , it will keep more than 300 cradles in front of its offices throughout Pakistan where families can drop off unwanted newborns . The foundation cares for them and puts them up for adoption , no questions asked . `` It 's for awareness -- that please do n't kill your innocent babies , '' Kazmi said .
Records from Pakistan show more than 100 newborns killed and dumped in Pakistan last year . Many of those killed are girls because of cultural attitudes and beliefs . In some countries , murder of girls is enough to skew population figures , he says .