Hermanegild Marcos Antonio Drago

Who is Hermanegild Marcos Antonio Drago?

Hermanegild Marcos Antonio Drago, was a Pakistani Catholic doctor who was revered across communal lines in the south of Pakistan, for his work in health, education and social welfare.

Born in Goa, India, on February 28, 1907, Drago graduated from St. Xavier's College, Bombay and Grant Medical College. In 1933 he moved to Mirpurkhas, Pakistan.

In 1947, during the partition of the subcontinent, trains loaded with refugees arrived in the town. Drago waited at the railway station with volunteers to tend to the injured and the ill. For this service he was honoured by Pope Pius XII in 1950 as a knight in the Order of St. Gregory the Great.

Drago's dedication and devotion to the sick and suffering led him to start a Tuberculosis Association and an Ante-Natal Clinic, which grew into the Mother and Child Welfare Association for the benefit of the many women affected by anemia and related problems.

With the help of Doctor Ruth Pfau, he also started a leprosy centre in a room of his clinic for patients who would otherwise need to travel to Karachi for treatment.

In 1981 he served on a government committee for the rehabilitation of polio-affected children.