Chabahar

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Coast of Chabahar

Chābahār (Persian: چابهار), previously also Bandar Beheshti, is an Iranian city and a free port (Free Trade Zone) on the coast of the Gulf of Oman.

Chabahar is situated on the Makran Coast of the Sistan and Baluchestan province of Iran and is officially designated as a Free Trade and Industrial Zone by Iran's government. Due to its free trade zone status, the city has increased in significance in international trade. The overwhelming majority of the city's inhabitants are ethnic Baluchis speaking the Balochi language.

Chabahar is the closest and best access point of Iran to the Indian Ocean. For this reason, Chabahar is the focal point of Iran for development of the east of the country through expansion and enhancement of transit routes among countries situated in the northern part of the Indian Ocean and Central Asia. The hope is that with the development of transit routes, and better security and transit services, the benefits will reach the area residents.

Chabahar's economic sectors are fishery industries and commercial sector, fishery sectors with largest amount of country's fish catch, mainly located out of the Chabahar Free Trade-Industrial Zone. Growing commercial sector located at free trade area with high potentiality to turn to a place that would connect business growth centers in south Asia (India) and Middle East (Dubai) to central Asian and Afghanistan market. Government plan to link Chabahar free trade area to Iran's main rail network which is connected to central Asia and Afghanistan would provide more capability for chabahar to foster faster logistics sector that is a basic to achieve better position comparing to its competitor (Pakistani port of Gwadar)

The majority of Chabahar people are form baluchi with tribunal baluchi culture but in recent years and after the establishment of Chabahar free trade zone many people from other parts of Iran immigrated to the city for finding jobs and better life, main characteristic of Chabahar baluchi community is its classification to high and low ranked tribunals.