Chief engineer of the public works department, Mumbai division, HS Pagare said they had received five bids out of which four were shortlisted — Tata Group, AEGIS, STUP Consultant and SU Patil.
The Chhatrapati Shivaji memorial in the Arabian Sea is finally moving ahead. Four international firms were finalised in the technical bids; one will be chosen to undertake this ambitious project.
Chief engineer of the public works department, Mumbai division, HS Pagare said they had received five bids out of which four were shortlisted — Tata Group, AEGIS, STUP Consultant and SU Patil.
"A high-powered committee meeting will take place under the chairmanship of chief minister Devendra Fadnavis, where technical and financial evaluations will be done of the shortlisted firms. After that, one will be awarded the contract," Pagare said.
Initially, when the state government had invited bids, only one firm had participated. Hence, the government had extended the bidding date for a week. The estimated cost of this project is Rs2,000 crore. However, the state has made a budgetary provision of Rs90 crore.
The state government has also decided to construct a temporary project office in Cuffe Parede. "We have sanctioned Rs1.16 crore for it. The office will be used to store historical items related to Shivaji Maharaj's life. This is going to be one of the grandest and best mid-sea memorials," a senior government official said.
The memorial will be developed on seven acres of an island in sea, four kilometres from Marine Drive. The entire island will look like a fort reminiscent of medieval times. There will be a special slide show daily on various phases of the Maratha king's life.
Expressing happiness at the project moving forward, president of Shivaji Memorial Project Committee Vinayak Mete said there were a lot of hurdles in its development. "We are, however, committed to building a grand memorial that will be a landmark not only in Mumbai but in the world. This memorial will inspire others," he added.
A senior government official said they have had to float bids five times for this project. "But this time we are sure that things will work. Last time, we had finalised New York-based firm NORR, which has developed world's tallest tower — Burj Khalifa. We had even planned to allocate the contract amount of Rs44 crore. But, at the last minute, they demanded Rs90 crore. Therefore, we were forced to hold bidding a fifth time," the official added.
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