Gwatar Bay (, ) is an inlet of the

Arabian Sea The Arabian Sea () is a region of sea in the northern Indian Ocean, bounded on the west by the Arabian Peninsula, Gulf of Aden and Guardafui Channel, on the northwest by Gulf of Oman and Iran, on the north by Pakistan, on the east by India, and ...

, located on the northeast of the

Gulf of Oman The Gulf of Oman or Sea of Oman ( ''khalīj ʿumān''; ''daryâ-ye omân''), also known as Gulf of Makran or Sea of Makran ( ''khalīj makrān''; ''daryâ-ye makrān''), is a gulf in the Indian Ocean that connects the Arabian Sea with th ...

, and indenting the

Makran Makran (), also mentioned in some sources as ''Mecran'' and ''Mokrān'', is the southern coastal region of Balochistan. It is a semi-desert coastal strip in the Balochistan province in Pakistan and in Iran, along the coast of the Gulf of Oman. I ...

coast at the southernmost part of the border of Iran and Pakistan.

Etymology

The bay is named after the Iranian town of Bandar Gavater on the northwest shore, which should not be confused with the Pakistani town of

Gwadar Gwadar (, ) is a Port, port city on the southwestern coast of the Administrative units of Pakistan, Pakistani province of Balochistan, Pakistan, Balochistan. The city is located on the shores of the Arabian Sea, opposite Oman and has a populati ...

, about to the east of the bay. Equally, this bay should not be confused with Gwadar West Bay and Gwadar East Bay, which are adjacent to the peninsula of Gwadar, lying about and respectively east of the subject of this article. The bay is mentioned in a book called "Gwatar Bay to

Sir Creek Sir Creek ( ), originally Ban Ganga, is a 96 km (60 mi) tidal estuary in the uninhabited marshlands of the Indus River Delta on the border between India and Pakistan. The creek flows into the Arabian Sea and separates Gujarat state in India f ...

: The Golden Coast of Pakistan — History and Memoirs", which references the two bodies of water that form the western and eastern ends of the coast of Pakistan.

Geography

The bay is about long (east-west) and wide (north-south). The

Bahu Kalat River The Bahu Kalat River (), also known as Bahu River, Dashtiari River and Silup River, is a river in the Sistan va Baluchistan province in Iran. It is located in Bahu district, Tribes living here are as follows; Hooth, Khosag, Gorgaij, Rind, kalmati ...

(also known as the Dashtiari River) flows into the bay from the northwest, and the

Dasht River The Dasht River () is located in the Makran region and Gwadar District, in the southwestern section of Balochistan Province, Pakistan which drains near Jiwani. Tributaries The Kech River which flows through Kech valley is the eastern tributary o ...

flows in from the northeast. Adjacent to the mouths of the two rivers, there are extensive

mangrove A mangrove is a shrub or tree that grows mainly in coastal saline water, saline or brackish water. Mangroves grow in an equatorial climate, typically along coastlines and tidal rivers. They have particular adaptations to take in extra oxygen a ...

swamps including the

Jiwani Coastal Wetland The Jiwani Coastal Wetland is a wetland located in Balochistan, Pakistan, near the town of Jiwani. The site is one of the 19 Ramsar Convention, Ramsar sites in Pakistan and was inducted in 2001. Location and geography The site is a lagoon, loc ...

. Apart from Bandar Gavater, the other main settlements on the bay are the Pakistani town of

Jiwani Jiwani (Urdu, ) is a town and commercial port located on the Gulf of Oman in the Gwadar District of the Balochistan province of Pakistan. The town has a population of 25,332 and is expected to become a major commercial centre in concert with the d ...

on the eastern shore and the Iranian town of Pasabandar at the southwest corner. The bay contains important fishing grounds which are being threatened by increasing industrial activity and overfishing as well as the development of the nearby ports of Gwadar and

Chahbahar Chabahar ( (); ) is a city in the Central District (Chabahar County), Central District of Chabahar County, Sistan and Baluchestan province, Sistan and Baluchestan province, Iran, serving as capital of both the county and the district. It is ...

. For a number of years, there have been calls for the establishment of a

Marine Protected Area A marine protected area (MPA) is a protected area of the world's seas, oceans, estuaries or in the US, the Great Lakes. These marine areas can come in many forms ranging from wildlife refuges to research facilities. MPAs restrict human activity ...

covering the bay. In 2021, the provincial government of Balochistan, Pakistan, and the local branch of the

World Wide Fund for Nature The World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) is a Swiss-based international non-governmental organization founded in 1961 that works in the field of wilderness preservation and the reduction of human impact on the environment. It was formerly named th ...

began building an artificial reef in a four square mile area west of Jiwani. The reef comprises 330 concrete blocks, each weighing 1.5 tons, mostly placed underwater to attract corals and sea creatures.

Etymology

Geography

References

Further reading