Sister Nirmala Joshi, who succeeded Nobel Peace Prize winner Mother Teresa as the head of the Missionaries of Charity (MoC), died in the East Indian city of Kolkata on Monday, reported Reuters.
The 81-year-old nun was suffering from heart disease and was brought back to the Missionaries of Charity home in the city after spending some time in the hospital, said Archibishop of Kolkata Father Thomas D'Souza, according to The Indian Express.
"She breathed her last peacefully, she was a great soul," he said. "She continued the legacy of Mother [Teresa] and took it forward."
Sister Nirmala Joshi, a Hindu who converted to catholicism, led the MoC to help the poor in India and around the globe. The Missionaries of Charity takes care of the sick and impoverished in more than 130 countries, running soup kitchens, AIDS hospitals, centers for leprosy patients and homes for women and orphans, according to the Wall Street Journal.
Sunita Kumar, a representative of the MoC, said that Sister Nirmala had dedicated herself to continue the work of Mother Teresa when she was appointed as her successor on March 13, 1997, six months prior to Mother Teresa's passing. Sister Mary Prema was appointed to succeed Sister Nirmala during a general chapter in 2009.
