The final technical rating of the four potential bidders for the Rs 600-crore Mumbai CCTV project has reached the state home department. The ratings of the six-member technical panel was compiled,sealed and sent to the home department on Saturday; it will now be opened and a final bidder chosen by a high-powered committee (HPC) chaired by the chief secretary by month-end. Considered to be the final stage,the chosen bidder will be the support partner to the Mumbai Polices multi-level integrated police surveillance mechanism involving 6,000 new cameras. The ratings were the result of several meetings,conducted over one month that involved six state government officials and a representative of IIT (Mumbai) sitting through bidder presentations. The initial phase saw seven bidders reduced to four. The bids had closed in March with the technical team taking over a month to check the scope of integration of each of the four players. The technical team was represented by members of BEST,BMC,IIT,state IT department and the Mumbai Police. We took time going through the presentations and making an educated opinion. We have arrived at a rating based on several parameters and now the final choice will be at the hands of HPC. BEST was part of the panel for requirement of electricity and for integration of their existing cameras with the surveillance network. The BMC will also be involved in permissions at several level. Their presence was important in the technical committee, said Rajesh Aggarwal,Secretary,Information Technology. The vendors were expected to pass a minimum of 70 per cent to reach the final stage. Unlike other bids and tenders of modernisation,the state government has been going through a detailed procedure for creating an integrated system that is expected to boost the surveillance capabilities of the Mumbai Police. In a situation where we are short-staffed,compared to the growing demographics,this level of penetration in a highly congested and sensitive areas will give policing much desired teeth, a senior official said. The chosen bidder will also be responsible for creating a support base for the footage and provide integration to the existing base of camera networks.
