Baba and Bhit Islands

Baba and Bhit Islands
جزیرہ بابا بھٹ
Neighbourhood
Map
DistrictKarachi West
CityKarachi
CountryPakistan
Time zoneUTC+5 (PST)

Baba and Bhit Islands (Urdu: جزیرہ بابا بھٹ ) are two small and densely populated islands located in the Karachi Harbour, in Karachi, Pakistan.[1] The approximate area of Bhit island is roughly 0.16 km2 while that of Baba island is around 0.15 km2. Around 5,400 people live on Bhit island while around 6,600 people live on Baba island.[2] With a population density of 33,750 and 44,000 people per km2 respectively, resulting in both islands being among the most densely populated islands in the world.

The islands are connected to Karachi via a ferry service to Keamari.[3]

The islands, along with Shams Pir, are old fishing villages in the harbor which predate the formal establishment of Karachi.[4] It is claimed that the two islands are over 400 years old.[5] The ethnic groups in Baba & Bhit Islands include 90% Kutchi and 10% Sindhi. 100% of the population is Muslim. The local Kutchi fishermen refer to themselves as Morrio Pata.[5] Villagers from these islands later helped settle Shams Pir.[5]

  1. ^ Kiamari Town - Government of Karachi Archived 2006-02-19 at the Wayback Machine
  2. ^ Ur Rehman, Zia (2015-11-24). "On Karachi's islands, tides go the other way in politics". The News. Retrieved 2023-11-18.
  3. ^ Hasan, Shazia (2013-06-27). "Overloaded boats continue to ferry people between city and islands". DAWN.COM. Retrieved 2020-04-19.
  4. ^ Siddiqui, Ahmed Husain (1996). Karachi: The Pearl of Arabian Sea. Mohammad Husain Academy.
  5. ^ a b c Tribune.com.pk (2019-02-24). "Forgotten stories of Karachi's coastal islands uncovered". The Express Tribune. Retrieved 2020-04-19.