Rupat


Rupat is an island in the Strait of Malacca, and forms part of Bengkalis Regency within Riau, Indonesia. It lies just off the eastern coast of Sumatra, across from Dumai city, from which it is separated by the Rupat Strait. Its area is. The island is sparsely populated, with an average population density of 33.4 per km2. 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 of Bengkalis Regency.
Rupat District comprises the southern 75.2% of the island, covering 1,143.72 km2, 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; it is sub-divided into four urban communities and twelve rural villages, 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 covers the northern 21.6% of the island, with an area of 377.14 km2 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; it is sub-divided into eight villages, 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 and twenty rural villages, listed below with their areas and their populations as officially estimated for mid 2023 although the mid-2024 estimates show a substantially lesser population.
Kode
Wilayah		Name of
kelurahan
or desa		Area
in km2		Pop'n
Estimate
mid 2023
14.03.10.1001Batu Panjang138.185,038
14.03.10.1002Pergam98.583,192
14.03.10.1003Terkul101.174,616
14.03.10.1004Tanjung Kapal264.644,137
14.03.10.2005Sei Cingam48.872,565
14.03.10.2006Teluk Lecah70.562,507
14.03.10.2007Makeruh24.081,554
14.03.10.2008Hutan Panjang39.242,311
14.03.10.2009Pangkalan Nyirih14.382,941
14.03.10.2010Sukarjo Mesin38.682,060
14.03.10.2011Darul Aman101.552,108
14.03.10.2012Parit Kebumen9.202,493
14.03.10.2013Sri Tanjung41.322,519
14.03.10.2014Pancur Jaya12.952,354
14.03.10.2015Pangkalan Pinang11.541,553
14.03.10.2016Dungun Baru121.362,277
14.03.10Totals Rupat District1,336.3044,225

Kode
Wilayah		Name of
desa		Area
in km2		Pop'n
Estimate
mid 2023
14.03.11.2001Tanjung Medan33.863,018
14.03.11.2002Teluk Rhu18.422,612
14.03.11.2003Tanjung Punak13.631,330
14.03.11.2004Kador20.052,139
14.03.11.2005Titi Akar208.124,162
14.03.11.2006Hutan Ayu35.771,107
14.03.11.2007Sukadamai25.12914
14.03.11.2008Putri Sembilan13.711,731
14.03.11Totals Rupat Utara District368.6817,013

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, Rupat is located in the East Asian-Australasian Flyway, a corridor used by bird of prey 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.