THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: A consortium formed of Habitat Technology Group and RTF Infra Private Limited, both based in the capital, has been picked to conduct the feasibility study and prepare the detailed project report for the state-of-the-art Elephant Rehabilitation Centre at Kottoor here. The project will be funded through KIIFB. The consortium will also have to provide advisory and consultancy services to the special purpose vehicle that will be formed for the construction of the elephant rehab centre. The initial shortlist of four bidders were later whittled down to two, the other being UNISON Project Management Private Limited.
The final two bidders submitted their bids on September 27. The Habitat-led consortium made a bid of '1.27 crore, and UNISON's was Rs 99.99 lakh. The tender evaluation committee set up by the Forest Department gave the Habitat consortium a technical score of 70 in a scale of 100. UNISON's score was 49.57. The financial score was 21.78 for the Habitat consortium and 30 for UNISON. However, after detailed scrutiny and evaluation, a 'quality-cum-cost'-based selection method was adopted by the tender evaluation committee. The total score for the consortium was 91.78 and 70.57 for UNISON.
The plan is to convert the sprawling centre, which spreads over 40 acres along the foot of the Agasthyarkoodam hills, into a shelter of sorts to feed, nurse and house young elephants found abandoned. The Centre will be modelled on the Pinnawala Elephant Orphanage in Sri Lanka, which has now become a major tourist attraction. The Pinnawala orphanage also conducts captive breeding of some elephants in its care. Besides creating a shelter, the Forest Department also has plans to create one of Asia’s finest Aviary within the Kottoor Elephant Rescue Centre. The bidders, sources said, have been asked to design an aviary which blends with the leafy ambience of the elephant centre. The Aviary was first mooted in 2012, when Mr K B Ganesh Kumar was forest minister.
