Abdul Sattar Edhi

Abdul Sattar Edhi (; 28 February 1928 – 8 July 2016) was a Pakistani philanthropist, ascetic, and humanitarian who founded the Edhi Foundation, which runs the worlds largest volunteer ambulance network, along with various homeless shelters, animal shelters, rehabilitation centres, and orphanages across Pakistan. Following his death, his son Faisal Edhi took over as head of the Edhi Foundation.Born in Bantva, Gujarat, British India in 1928, Edhi later moved to Karachi where he established a free dispensary for the citys low-income residents. Edhi is also inspired by the famous Khaksar Tehrik [Founded by Allama Mashriqi], a semi-military volunteer organisation that emerged from the lower class. Dressed in Khaki, the colour of the earth and armed with belchas (spades), the volunteers would walk from one village to another village to solve peoples problems. (Urban Navigations: Politics, Space and the City in South Asia)”Edhis charitable activities expanded in 1957 when an Asian flu epidemic (originating in China) swept through Pakistan and the rest of the world. Donations allowed him to buy his first ambulance the same year. He later expanded his charity network with the help of his wife Bilquis Edhi.Over his lifetime, the Edhi Foundation expanded, backed entirely by private donations, which included establishing a network of 1,800 minivan ambulances. By the time of his death, Edhi was registered as a parent or guardian of nearly 20,000 adopted children of whom he was an active caretaker. He is known amongst Pakistanis as the Angel of Mercy and is considered to be Pakistans most respected and legendary figure. In 2013, The Huffington Post claimed that he might be the worlds greatest living humanitarian.Edhi maintained a hands-off management style and was often critical of the largely corrupt clergy and politicians. He was a strong proponent of religious tolerance in Pakistan and extended his support to the victims of Hurricane Katrina and the 1985 famine in Ethiopia. He was nominated several times for the Nobel Peace Prize, including by Malala Yousafzai. Edhi received several awards including the Gandhi Peace Award, Ahmadiyya Muslim Peace Prize and the UNESCO-Madanjeet Singh Prize.

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