Bilquis Bano Edhi, the wife of renowned humanitarian and philanthropist Abdul Sattar Edhi, passed away at the age of 74 on Friday after a brief hospitalisation.

Her condition had stabilised a few days back. She was admitted to a hospital in Karachi for three days and was rushed there after her blood pressure had suddenly dropped. According to an Edhi Foundation spokesperson, Bilquis was ill for the last one month.

“Though she is not in a serious condition, she will remain in the hospital for a couple of more days,” the spokesperson of the Edhi Foundation had said.

Last year, Bilquis was declared the ‘Person of the Decade’, along with human rights rapporteur of the UN Prof Yanghee Lee and the US ethicist Stephen Soldz.

A spokesperson for the Edhi Foundation had told APP that as per the domino effect verdict, announced on Friday by the Impact Hallmarks, Bilquis Edhi was declared the most impactful person of the first two decades of the 21st century.

First Lady Tehmina Durrani also visited her during Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif’s maiden visit to Karachi on Wednesday.

Bilqis was one of the most active philanthropists in the country and co-chaired Edhi Foundation with her son Faisal after her husband’s passing in 2016.

She was born in Bantwa in 1947. Together with her husband, their charity has saved thousands of unwanted babies.

Bilquis was a professional nurse and headed the Bilquis Edhi Foundation. She spent more than six decades of her life serving humanity in need.