Rupat () is an island in the
Strait of Malacca
The Strait of Malacca is a narrow stretch of water, long and from wide, between the Malay Peninsula to the northeast and the Indonesian island of Sumatra to the southwest, connecting the Andaman Sea (Indian Ocean) and the South China Sea (Pa ...
, and forms part of
Bengkalis Regency within
Riau
Riau (Jawi script, Jawi: ) is a Provinces of Indonesia, province of Indonesia. It is located on the central eastern coast of the island of Sumatra, and extends from the eastern slopes of the Barisan Mountains to the Malacca Strait, including s ...
, Indonesia. It lies just off the eastern coast of
Sumatra
Sumatra () is one of the Sunda Islands of western Indonesia. It is the largest island that is fully within Indonesian territory, as well as the list of islands by area, sixth-largest island in the world at 482,286.55 km2 (182,812 mi. ...
, across from
Dumai city, from which it is separated by the
Rupat Strait (). Its area is . The island is sparsely populated (50,803 in mid-2024), with an average population density of 33.4 per km
2.
[Badan Pusat Statistik, Jakarta, 28 February 2025, ''Kabupaten Bengkalis Dalam Angka 2025'' (Katalog-BPS 1102001.1408)] Rupat was one of thousands of abandoned islands, but its population is growing yearly, which has made the government expand the area for the settlement.
The island is administratively divided into two districts (''kecamatan'') of Bengkalis Regency.
Rupat District comprises the southern 75.2% of the island, covering 1,143.72 km
2, with 30,550 inhabitants at the 2010 Census and 34,719 at the 2020 Census; the official estimate in mid 2024 was 36,307 inhabitants;
[Badan Pusat Statistik, Jakarta, 28 February 2025, ''Kabupaten Bengkalis Dalam Angka 2025'' (Katalog-BPS 1102001.1408)] it is sub-divided into four urban communities (''kelurahan'') and twelve rural villages (''desa''), all sharing the postcode of 28781. The main town is at Batu Panjang on the south coast of the island, which faces
Dumai city across the Rupat Strait.
North Rupat District (''Rupat Utara'') covers the northern 21.6% of the island, with an area of 377.14 km
2 and with 13,020 inhabitants at the 2010 Census and 14,117 at the 2020 Census; the official estimate in mid 2024 was 14,496 inhabitants;
[Badan Pusat Statistik, Jakarta, 28 February 2025, ''Kabupaten Bengkalis Dalam Angka 2025'' (Katalog-BPS 1102001.1408)] it is sub-divided into eight villages (all rural ''desa''), all sharing the postcode of 28782, with the village of Tanjung Medang being home to the district administration.
Communities
The two districts comprise four urban communities (''kelurahan'', listed first in the table below) and twenty rural villages (''desa''), listed below with their areas and their populations as officially estimated for mid 2023
[Badan Pusat Statistik, Jakarta, 26 September 2024, ''Kabupaten Rupat Dalam Angka 2024'' (Katalog-BPS 1102001.1408030)][Badan Pusat Statistik, Jakarta, 26 September 2024, ''Kabupaten Rupat Utara Dalam Angka 2024'' (Katalog-BPS 1102001.1408031)] although the mid-2024 estimates show a substantially lesser population.
[Badan Pusat Statistik, Jakarta, 28 February 2025, ''Kabupaten Bengkalis Dalam Angka 2025'' (Katalog-BPS 1102001.1408)]
Proposed Malacca Strait Bridge
There is a proposal by the Malaysian government with Chinese financial backing to build a bridge from Melaka to Rupat and thence to Dumai, to be called the
Malacca Strait Bridge, though Jakarta seems to prefer to build the
Sunda Strait Bridge first.
Raptor bird migration
Together with the
Sangihe Islands
The Sangihe Islands (also spelled "Sangir", "Sanghir" or "Sangi") – – are a group of islands that constitute two regencies within the province of North Sulawesi, in northern Indonesia, the Sangihe Islands Regency. The word Sangihe ...
, Rupat is located in the
East Asian-Australasian Flyway, a corridor used by
bird of prey
Birds of prey or predatory birds, also known as (although not the same as) raptors, are hypercarnivorous bird species that actively predation, hunt and feed on other vertebrates (mainly mammals, reptiles and smaller birds). In addition to speed ...
for migration. 24 of the 56 kinds of Asian raptors can be found in both locations. From September to November, up to 2,000 raptors migrate to Rupat every day, while migration out happens from February to April.
References
Islands of Sumatra
Landforms of Riau
Populated places in Indonesia
Islands of the Strait of Malacca
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