Bitra: a small island inside a vast lagoon

Atoll

Bitra

Area

0.105 km²

Population

271 2011

Access

Sea, or Agatti and boat

Permit

Required

Reviewed

15 Sept 2026

• Smallest inhabited island in the territory
• Official lagoon area: 45.61 sq km

Bitra is the smallest inhabited island in the Lakshadweep Administration’s record. Its land area is 0.105 sq km, while the recorded lagoon covers 45.61 sq km. That contrast is the clearest way to understand the island.

The scale in official figures

The Administration records Bitra at 0.57 km long and 0.28 km wide at its broadest point. Its 2011 population was 271. The page places the island 483 km from Kochi.

The source also records a small shrine associated with Malik Mulla and an account of permanent settlement beginning with a woman from Chetlat and her son. This guide leaves the account as the Administration presents it and does not add a date or interpretation beyond the source.

The image shows the reef, not a visitor experience

The lead image is a NASA photograph taken from the International Space Station on 12 October 2009. Its catalogue identifies the geographic feature as Bitra Reef in Lakshadweep. The image is public domain and is cropped for this page.

It documents the reef’s setting from orbit. It does not prove beach conditions, reef health, fishing pressure, wildlife, diving access or what a traveller would see from a ship.

What the official pages do not establish

The Bitra page has a broad access label. The general How to Reach guide describes passenger ships for Lakshadweep, but neither source publishes a current Bitra tourist sailing, landing arrangement or accommodation record.

The previous page claimed that tourists could sail past, that research access was possible, and that visitor accommodation did not exist. None of those claims was supported by a current primary source, so they have been removed.

If Bitra appears in a proposed itinerary

Ask the issuer to provide, in writing:

• the exact permitted island and activity;
• whether the plan involves landing or remaining aboard;
• the vessel, date and passenger confirmation;
• the return or onward sector;
• any accommodation name if an overnight is proposed.

Cross-check the island endorsement through the entry-permit guide and the transport record through the ship-ticket guide. A map, package name or verbal assurance is not enough.

Read Bitra in context

Kiltan and Chetlat are the nearest northern profiles in this guide, while Amini provides a clearer officially documented craft story. Use the islands hub to understand the geography without assuming a northern-island route is available.

What remains unconfirmed

The sources checked on 15 September 2026 do not publish current Bitra tourist access, a passenger timetable, a landing arrangement, an activity schedule, accommodation inventory or package departure.

Bitra is a documented island, not a documented holiday product.