Karachi, July 9: Pakistani philanthropist Abdul Sattar Edhi, revered as a "living saint" in the South Asian nation, was buried on the outskirts of Karachi today after a state funeral attended by thousands of people.

Edhi,92 died after he suffered kidney failure last evening. He leaves behind a widow, Bilqees Edhi who is also a social worker, and five daughters.

Thousands of people from all walks of life, including Pakistan President Mamnoon Hussain, armed forces chiefs, chief ministers of Sindh and Punjab and top civil and military officials attended Edhi's funeral.

He ran a huge philanthropic empire across Pakistan, that included hundreds of homes for the destitute and orphans, over 1,500 ambulances and several helicopters that provided free services to the people.

The last person who got the state funeral in Pakistan was former President Gen. Zia-ul-Haq who had died in an air crash near Bahawalpur in August 1988.

The Pakistan army chief, Gen. Raheel Sharif, and other top army, naval and air force officials paid their last respects to Edhi as his body, draped in the national flag, passed by them in the National Stadium in Karachi.

His body was taken to Edhi village on the outskirts of Islamabad in a vehicle covered with the national flag and escorted by naval and military police contingents.

People lined up on two sides of the road from the stadium to Edhi village and showered rose petals on the vehicle.

His coffin was carried by Pakistan army soldiers to the grave that he had himself dug 25 years ago. They saluted the humanist giant after placing the coffin close to his grave. Edhi's body was then lowered into the grave by the soldiers and his son Faisal amid tight security.

Edhi was buried in the black militia uniform that the philanthropist was wearing at the time of his death according to his will. The bearded Edhi spent his entire life in just two pairs of militia salwar kameez suits despite owning an empire worth billions of dollars.

All Pakistani TV channels aired a minute-by-minute live coverage of the event.

Edhi used to live in a very small house in an impoverished neighbourhood of Karachi. He was awarded the highest civil award, the Nishan-e-Imtiaz, posthumously with one-day mourning announced by Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif.