HCL Harit – Coastal and Marine Conservation in FY 2022-23

Last date for submission July 11, 2022

HCL Foundation invites proposals from NGOs/NPOs/CSR Organizations to develop a Baseline (Needs Assessment) for Coastal and Marine Conservation in FY 2022-23, under its flagship programme HCL Harit

RFP released by HCL Foundation

Programme Name HCL Harit RfP

Location Ramanathapuram and Thoothukudi Districts, Tamil Nadu

HCL Foundation (HCLF) was established in 2011 as the CSR arm of HCL Technologies. It is a not for-profit- organization, that strives to contribute towards national and international development goals, bringing about lasting positive impact in the lives of people, through long term sustainable programmes. The foundation aims to alleviate poverty and achieve inclusive growth and development.

Active community engagement ensures optimal long-term gains and upward accountability. HCL Foundation works through Life Cycle Based, Integrated Community Development Approach with thematic focus on Education, Health, Skill Development & Livelihood, Environment and Disaster Risk Reduction & Response. Child protective strategies, inclusion and gender transformative approaches remain central in all initiatives of HCL Foundation, thus ensuring comprehensive development.

Presently HCL Foundation is implementing five flagship programmes, namely HCL Samuday & HCL Grant – Rural Development programmes; HCL Uday & Clean Noida – Urban Development programmes; HCL Harit (The Green Initiative) – Environment Action programme and 4 special initiatives – Power of One, Sports for Change, HCL Foundation Academy and My E-Haat. For more details, please visit our website – https://www.hclfoundation.org/

VISION To be the source code for sustainable socio-economic and environmental development.

MISSION Nurture clean, green and healthy communities where everyone is empowered and equipped to reach their full potential in partnership with its employees, communities and stakeholders, while promoting volunteerism and establishing international standards of strategic planning, implementation and measuring impact.

Link to Videos: HCL Foundation Video –https://youtu.be/DK1wtWG_zJQ

HCL Harit Video – https://youtu.be/O8YPCjdGayU

HCL Harit HCL Foundation launched HCL Harit – The Green Initiative a distinct flagship programme for Environment Action; with the vision ‘to conserve, restore and enhance indigenous environmental systems and respond to climate change in a sustainable manner through community engagement’. Throughout the process, HCL Harit ensures at building scalable and replicable models that are economically viable, socially acceptable, environmentally sustainable, holistic and inclusive. All these interventions follow ‘Participatory and Convergent Approach’ in attaining the desired results towards UN SDGs aligned to the National Indicator Framework for SDG. Operational in nine States – Uttar Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Odisha, West Bengal, Uttarakhand, Telangana, Harit is building sustainable and inclusive models towards:

• A flourishing biodiversity, green cover and building climate resilience through afforestation;
• An abundance of water resources through rejuvenating vanishing waterbodies;
• A thriving coastal and marine habitats by habitat restoration initiatives;
• A better life for animals by improving human-animal relationships and addressing animal welfare inside community areas;
• Cleaner air through reducing and neutralizing CO2 emissions;
• Protecting and preserving the environment through education, community stewardship and participation.

Since the inception of HCL Harit programme:

• More than 530,000 saplings have been planted across 286+ acres of land;
• Eighty (80) waterbodies rejuvenated to restore the terrestrial water ecosystems;
• Eighty-five (85) compost pits constructed to address stubble burning issue and promote organic farming;
• Around 8,000 people have been reached through Environment Education;
• Over 46,000 animals reached through animal welfare initiative;
• Under coastal & marine conservation initiative, over 57,000 kgs of ghost nets have been retrieved from coastal waters and 2,70,000+ mangrove and shelter belt saplings planted to enhance climate resilience

HCL Harit is inviting organizations to contribute to the same in the lines of the scope of work mentioned in the next section (but not limited to).  Request for Proposals

Proposals are invited from NGOs/NPOs/CSR organizations to develop Baseline (needs assessment) for Coastal and Marine Conservation in Ramanathapuram and Thoothukudi Districts of Tamil Nadu.

The purpose of this document is to request for proposals in-line with the standards of HCL Foundation. Respondents are requested to submit their proposals on the basis of detailed instructions given below.

Scope of work The proposed scope of work is captured below. These are expected deliverables but not limited to only this list. The organization may wish to further enrich this list in accordance with the proposed context and as per their expertise and capabilities.

1. Assessment of marine debris with special emphasis on Ghost Net in the reef areas of Gulf of Mannar National Park

Marine debris are items appearing in the oceans, seas and on beaches as a result of human activities. Ghost nets and other marine debris, largely macro plastics pose a severe threat to coastal and marine habitats across India’s coastlines. These macro plastics result in stranding, strangulation, drowning and starvation of most marine fauna and flora. Ghost nets and other waste are exacerbating the situation. This marine debris can be found floating on the surface of the oceans and seas, entangled on the sea floor as well as strewn on the beaches and coastlines. The switch from natural or biodegradable fishing gear to synthetic fishing gear has resulted in an increase in the number of ghost nets accumulating in the world’s oceans and seas. Marine debris and other macro plastics are also a source of concern to human activities because they have the potential to become a navigational hazard in coastal and offshore locations, posing safety concerns.

a. Conduct underwater assessments (situation analysis) for all 21 Islands and adjoining reef area of Gulf of Mannar Marine National Park

b. Scientific techniques are to be adopted for the assessment

c. Analyze and report in terms of the type of debris and ghost nets found in the study area and the associated risks involved with this debris

d. Developing Detailed Project Report (DPR) with a 2-year project plan to retrieve ghost nets and associated debris

e. The DPR should include a risk/vulnerability mitigation plan

f. The DPR should also include a robust Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning (MEL) framework

2. Assessment of Plastic waste management and recycling practices in the villages and towns adjoining the Gulf of Mannar National Park

Macro plastics are non-degradable, synthetic materials that eventually break down to form microplastics. They are found in the forms of bags, footwear, ghost nets etc. This debris is harmful in every state (macro, micro and meso) and are directly responsible for the degradation of marine habitats across the world. A considerable quantity of macro plastics in the Gulf of Mannar come from adjoining villages which are adding to already concerning levels of plastics and other toxins in the seas posing a threat to humans too through bioaccumulation, bio-magnification and contamination.

a. Document the current waste management practices in the villages (21) adjoining to the Gulf of Mannar National Park based. Include discussions with the local officials and on ground inspection to help align the proposed solutions with the current system.

b. Map in detail the influx of waste into the Gulf of Mannar Marine National Park and adjacent water bodies, based on physical inspection. Estimate the quantum of waste flowing from different areas to identify prioritize the intervention areas.

c. Analyze possible future areas that could contribute to waste flowing into National Park to include in the project intervention area.

d. Analyze the waste composition that is flowing into the Gulf, list top waste items and categories (volumetric) that get into the Gulf to help develop the action plan.

e. Identify different categories of waste generators who are contributing to waste getting into the Gulf. Estimate the number of different types of generators.

f. Demographic profiling (population, family size, age group, income, occupation etc.) of the different types of generators.

g. Develop KAP (Knowledge, Attitude, Process) survey questionnaire for different types of waste generators with regards to overall waste management in the town and waste flowing into the Gulf of Mannar.

h. Perform stakeholder mapping and conduct surveys with each stakeholder group with scientific sample size and sampling strategy.

i. Develop Detailed Project Report (DPR) with 2-year project plan to create behavior change awareness programme and address risk of macro plastic entering into marine areas.

j. DPR to address the problem of waste flowing into the National park through awareness programme and improved waste collection and processing.

k. The report must have the intervention plan with short, medium and long term measures; manpower, timeline and funds required for the intervention; roles and responsibility of other stakeholders; details of infrastructure if required; for the municipality, along with expected impact from the intervention in short and long term.

l. DPR should have risk mapping (Operational, Governance, etc.) along with a risk mitigation plan.

m. The DPR should include clear ‘Theory of Change’ with SMART indicators of success.

n. The DPR should also include a robust Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning (MEL) framework.

o. Consolidate details on Gaps in terms of funding, technical expertise, etc. to address the issue.

p. Consolidate details on Government Policies, interventions, etc. in these locations.

q. Mapping of relevant stakeholders.

r. Furnish case studies or use cases on the best practices.

Location Details Gulf of Mannar

1. Ramanathapuram

2. Thoothukudi

Submission Details & Deadlines Reputed NGOs/NPOs/CSR organizations may submit proposals as per their strength and area of expertise.

• All proposals must be submitted with technical, commercial and proposed timeline.
• An organization can apply for either or both the proposed baseline study depending upon the expertise and capabilities.
• Please send in your submissions with Subject Line in the given format: HCLF/RFP/Harit/Coastal&Marine/10062022/ latest by July 11, 2022 to farnaaz.nawab@hcl.com, marking jainvinith.veluswamy@hcl.com in cc, with all relevant documents.
• Proposals received after the due date and time will not be considered. All enquiries regarding this RFP should be made by July 4, 2022 via email to farnaaz.nawab@hcl.com, marking jainvinith.veluswamy@hcl.com in cc.

Terms & Conditions

• Duration of the project: Duration of the project is maximum 2 months.
• Deadline: Proposals received after the designated deadline may be subject to rejection by HCL Foundation.
• Validity: Your proposal must remain valid for a minimum of three (3) months from the date of receipt by HCL Foundation.
• Negotiations: The most competitive proposal is requested. It is anticipated that the partnership will made on the basis of merit of proposal. However, HCL Foundation reserves the right to request responses to questions and conduct negotiations with any potential organization prior to finalizing the partnership.
• Rejection of proposal: This document is a request for proposals only, and in no way binds HCL Foundation to make an award. HCL Foundation reserves the right to reject any and all offers received and/or to cancel the RFP. HCL Foundation will not be obliged to either inform or provide a justification for rejection of proposals.
• Incurring costs: HCL Foundation will not be liable for any cost incurred during preparation, submission, or negotiation of an award for this RFP.
• Financial responsibility: Proposals must certify the financial viability and adequacy of resources of the organization to complete the proposed assignment within the agreed time frame and in conformity with the agreed terms of payment. HCL Foundation reserves the right to request and review up to the last three financial statements and audit reports including schedules and annexures, as part of the basis of the award if required.
• Branding aligned: HCL Foundation has set brand guidelines that should be incorporated and followed while demonstrating the Foundation’s brand.
• Copyright and Patents: HCL Foundation shall be entitled to all copyrights, patents and other proprietary rights and trademarks with regard to the products or documents and other materials which bear a direct relation to or are produced or prepared or collected in consequences of or in the course of the execution of the contract. All plans, reports, recommendations, estimates, documents and data compiled by the service providers under the contract shall be the property of HCL Foundation and shall be treated as confidential. All confidential documents should be delivered to the relevant people within HCL Foundation during the project duration and upon completion.