Kottoor elephant camp work next year.

The ambitious Kerala Infrastructure Investment Fund Board (KIIFB)-funded project to upgrade the elephant rehabilitation centre at Kottoor to international standards is expected to take off early next year.

The Forest Department has submitted a detailed project report (DPR), prepared by the Habitat Technology Group and RTF Infra Pvt. Ltd., for the ₹113-crore project.

The KIIFB is expected to accord clearance for the project at its next meeting, which will possibly be held in November, according to K.J. Varughese, special officer for the project. The tenders will be floated after that.

The project has to be completed within 18 months from the date of commencement.

While the Neyyar-Peppara Forest Development Agency had been designated the special purpose vehicle for the project, the Forest Department recently roped in the Kerala State Housing Board (KSHB) as the project management consultant.

Mr. Varughese added that a technical committee comprising KSHB Chief Engineer Rajeev Kariyil, former Chief Engineer of Central Public Works Department Unnikrishna Panicker, and National Board for Wildlife member P.S. Easa had been formed to finalise the contractor.

The proposed state-of-the-art facility has been envisaged to include various components such as enclosures for 50 elephants; elephant bathing area; elephant natural history museum; special veterinary clinic; facilities for training and accommodating mahouts and staff; care facility for elephant calves; elephant dung recycling and zero waste unit; research, training and skill development centre; and ponds for rainwater harvesting.

The rehabilitation centre is being developed on 200 hectares with around half of the entire plot being reserved for creating the elephant habitat.The existing facility is currently spread over 56 hectares.

Pathways will also be developed for visitors with a two-barrier system of trenches and solar fences separating them from the enclosures.

THE HINDU