Humanitarian and social activist Bilquis Edhi has been declared as Person of the Year by an international web-based organization Impact Hallmarks. The news was made public by the Edhi Foundation on Friday evening honoring the philanthropist for selflessly devoting her time to serve mankind.
The 73-year-old philanthropist who opened the Eidhi Foundation with her late husband Abdul Sattar Edhi has been taking care of unwanted children for over 60 years. They introduced the concept of having a jhoola (cradle) outside their charity homes to look after and nurture unwanted babies.
The trust has approximately 300 cradles places all across the country and managed to successfully save the lives of more than 42,000 infants. On multiple occasions, the couple has been recognized for their relentless efforts to bring up children in a healthy and happy environment.
While the widely respected and humble Abdul Sattar was known by the people as Angel of Mercy, Bilquis is known as The Mother of Pakistan. The two most deserving individuals doing justice to the titles.
Bilquis has been acknowledged by being honored with multiple national and foreign accolades such as the ‘Mother Teresa Memorial International Award’ for Social Justice, the ‘Lenin Peace Prize’, ‘Halal-e- Imtiaz’, and the ‘Ramon Magsaysay’ for Public Service.
She has also been called the most influential person of the 21st century. Bilquis will be sharing the laurel with two other distinguished personalities Professor Yanghee Lee, a spokesperson appointed by the United Nations, and ethicist Stephen Soldz. All three were the most favored and made it to the top of the list.
The contest resulted in another proud moment for Pakistan when scientist and polymath Aurangzeb Al Hafi ranked number 6 on the Top of the Top 10 list for making outstanding discoveries in the field of medicine and nuclear energy.