REQUEST FOR QUOTATION (RFQ)
Baseline Landscape Mapping for Assisted Natural Regeneration (ANR)
RFQ Reference No.:- LF/RFQ/HCLF/2026-27/004
Date of Issue:- June 18, 2026
Issued By:- LIVE FOUNDATION
Project:- ARANYA – Reviving Native Biodiversity and Forest Ecosystems, West Singhbhum
Component:- Baseline Landscape Mapping (Geospatial Assessment of Degraded Forest Patches)
Last Date for Submission:- June 28, 2026
Subject Line:- ARANYA Baseline Landscape Mapping RFQ
1. About LIVE Foundation and Project ARANYA
LIVE FOUNDATION is a community-focused organisation working on ecological restoration, biodiversity conservation, and climate-resilient livelihoods in the forest landscapes of West Singhbhum, Jharkhand. The Foundation works closely with Gram Sabhas, Community Forest Resource Management Committees (CFRMCs), and women- and youth-led collectives, and has prior experience deploying GIS, remote sensing, and mobile data-collection tools to bridge scientific assessment with community-led stewardship.
Project ARANYA (Action for Restoring Native Yields, Nature, and Youth Awareness) is a four-year, community-led ecological restoration and climate-resilience programme across forest-fringe villages in the Tonto and Noamundi blocks of West Singhbhum. The programme aims to restore approximately 2,500 hectares of degraded forest landscape by regenerating 100+ degraded micro-patches, primarily through Assisted Natural Regeneration (ANR), supported by enrichment planting, removal of invasive species, and rejuvenation of natural water bodies. All restoration decisions are anchored in Gram Sabha and CFRMC governance.
2. Purpose of this RFQ
LIVE FOUNDATION invites quotations from qualified agencies, firms, consultancies, or individual professionals to undertake a Baseline Landscape Mapping exercise across the ARANYA intervention landscape. The core purpose of this assignment is to:
- Map and quantify the extent, location, and severity of degraded forest patches across the Tonto and Noamundi blocks; and
- Classify these degraded patches by their natural regeneration potential, so that the Foundation can decide — patch by patch — the appropriate ANR treatment (protection-led recovery, invasive-removal-led recovery, or enrichment planting).
The mapping outputs will directly inform patch selection, restoration planning, labour estimation, nursery/sapling demand, and the establishment of a monitoring baseline for the project period.
3. Geographic Coverage
The assignment shall cover the full set of 70 candidate villages (from which 50 will be finalised by the project) across the intervention landscape, corresponding to the ~2,500 ha restoration target. Indicative coverage:
Blocks: Tonto (8 Panchayats, 45 villages; Forest-fringe villages within mid-dense forest ranges) and Noamundi (6 Panchayats, 25 villages; Includes localised forest-edge and post-mining pressure zones) [Total 70 villages~2,500 ha restoration target across 100+ micro-patches (~25 ha avg.)]
4. Scope of Work and Methodological Approach
Approach in brief
This is a desktop-led (remote-sensing-based) mapping assignment. The vendor performs the geospatial classification and analysis, supported by a hybrid field-validation model: a focused vendor-led ground-truth sample plus community-collected points using a vendor-designed protocol (Section 4.5). A full on-foot ecological inventory of every hectare is NOT required.
4.1 Satellite and Geospatial Analysis
- Land use / land cover and canopy density classification of the intervention landscape using multi-temporal optical satellite imagery. The base assignment shall rely on free or moderately priced sources — Sentinel-2 (10 m), LISS-IV via NRSC/Bhuvan, and freely available high-resolution visual basemaps for patch-boundary digitisation.
- Canopy-density categories should align with India State of Forest Report (ISFR/FSI) density classes (open / moderately dense / very dense, plus non-forest and scrub) so that outputs are interoperable with Forest Department data.
- Terrain and hydrology layers — slope, drainage lines, streams, and community ponds — derived from a suitable DEM (e.g., Cartosat / SRTM), to inform soil-moisture works, fire-line placement, and riparian species considerations.
4.2 Change Detection and Degradation Trend
- Multi-temporal NDVI / canopy comparison over an approximately 10-year window to establish the degradation trajectory of each patch (declining / stable / recovering), not merely a single-date snapshot.
- Consistent post-monsoon imagery should be used across years so that seasonal greenness variation is not misread as genuine change. The vendor must state image dates and the seasonal window used.
4.3 Degraded-Patch Delineation and Regeneration-Potential Classification
This is the central analytical output of the assignment.
- Delineate candidate degraded patches as GIS polygons across the landscape, each attributed with area (ha), village/Panchayat/range, canopy class, and degradation severity (light / moderate / severe).
- Produce a transparent, weighted regeneration-potential classification combining: current canopy density, the degradation trend, proximity to intact/dense forest (natural seed source), slope/erosion risk, and invasive load.
- Classify each patch into an ANR treatment category: (a) protection-only / passive ANR, (b) invasive-removal-led ANR, and (c) ANR with enrichment planting. The weighting logic must be documented so the classification is auditable rather than a black box.
4.4 Invasive Species Mapping
- Map the distribution and density (density classes) of priority invasive species — Lantana camara, Eupatorium / Chromolaena, and Parthenium — across the landscape.
- As these species are difficult to separate spectrally from satellite imagery alone, the mapping must be confirmed through the field-validation points (Section 4.5). Output density classes should be usable for estimating clearing labour (project planning reference: ~25 man-days/ha for initial clearing).
4.5 Field Validation and Accuracy Assessment (Hybrid Model)
- Vendor-led validation: the vendor shall conduct a focused, statistically representative field-validation sample (GPS ground-truth points and verification transects) sufficient to verify the canopy, degradation, regeneration-potential, and invasive classifications. Bidders are invited to propose the sample size and approach in their technical quotation.
- Community-supported ground-truthing: the vendor shall design a simple field protocol and a digital data-collection form (e.g., Kobo Toolbox) and provide a short training so that LIVE FOUNDATION's Van Sahelis and youth teams can collect additional ground-truth points across the wider landscape. This extends coverage cost-effectively and builds the Foundation's in-house monitoring capacity.
- Accuracy reporting: the vendor shall integrate both sources and report a quantitative accuracy assessment (e.g., overall accuracy and, where applicable, a confusion/error matrix) for the principal classified layers.
- LIVE FOUNDATION will coordinate the community component, facilitate local access, and arrange community liaison but will not bear costs related to conveyance or field level exercise (if any) of the hired agency for the baseline survey.
4.6 Optional Add-On Components (Priced Separately)
The following are NOT part of the base assignment. Bidders may optionally propose them as separately priced line items in the financial annexure, for the Foundation to consider on cost/value grounds:
- Commercial high-resolution satellite imagery for selected patches.
- Drone / UAV survey of shortlisted candidate patches for very-high-resolution detail
5. Deliverables
The vendor shall deliver the following:
D1- DERIVERABLE: Regeneration-Potential Classification (CORE) SPECIFICATION: Degraded patches delineated as GIS polygons, each classified by ANR treatment category (protection-only / invasive-removal-led / enrichment-planting), with documented weighting logic.
D2: DERIVERABLE: Invasive Species Map (CORE) SPECIFICATION: Distribution and density-class mapping of Lantana, Eupatorium/Chromolaena and Parthenium, confirmed via field validation.
D3: DERIVERABLE: Change-Detection / Degradation-Trend Layer (CORE) SPECIFICATION: Multi-temporal NDVI/canopy change over ~10 years, classifying each patch as declining / stable / recovering.
D4: DERIVABLE: Administrative Boundary Layer; Human Settlement Layer; Natural Water Resource Layer; Road Network Layer SPECIFICATION: Editable shapefiles of each layer should be illustrated in the concerned village file (file type must be in qgz/qgs extension).
D5: DERIVERABLE: GIS Geodatabase + Shapefiles (CORE) SPECIFICATION: Editable shapefiles / geodatabase with complete attribute tables and metadata, in WGS84 / UTM Zone 45N. Must be reusable by the Foundation for ongoing (Year 2–4) monitoring. No locked / PDF & png-only layers for the core data.
D6: DERIVERABLE: Methodology & Accuracy Report SPECIFICATION: Report stating data sources, image dates and seasonal window, classification methods, the regeneration-potential weighting, and field-validation accuracy results.
D7: DERIVERABLE: Patch-wise Register SPECIFICATION: Spreadsheet register of all delineated patches (ID, location, area, canopy class, severity, trend, invasive load, ANR category) for field teams to carry into transect walks.
D8: DERIVERABLE: Map Atlas SPECIFICATION: Print-ready, georeferenced map atlas at Panchayat level (14 sheets) plus one master landscape map, suitable for Gram Sabha presentation. Delivered as digital print-ready files (png, DPI -600 to 900) for the Foundation to print in-house.
ADDITIONAL INSTRUCTION: THE AFOREMENTIONED LAYERS OF EACH VILLAGE MAY BE PLACED TOGETHER IN A SINGLE QGZ FILE BUT DIFFERENT VILLAGES MUST BE SEPARATED IN DISTINCT QGZ FILES.
Data ownership: All data, imagery-derived layers, geodatabases, shapefiles, registers, reports, and maps produced under this assignment shall be the sole property of LIVE FOUNDATION. The vendor shall hand over all source layers and editable files and shall not reuse, publish, or share project data without prior written consent of the Foundation.
6. Timeline
The complete assignment, including all deliverables in Section 5, is to be delivered within 4 to 6 weeks from the date of signing of the agreement. Bidders should propose a brief week-wise work plan within this window in their technical quotation.
Phase 1: Indicative Timing Week 1-2; Activity- Inception, data acquisition, and desktop classification (LULC, canopy, change detection)
Phase 2: Indicative Timing Week 2-4; Activity- Patch delineation, regeneration-potential and invasive mapping
Phase 3: Indicative Timing Week 3-5; Activity- Field validation (vendor sample + training community teams) and accuracy assessment
Phase 4: Indicative Timing Week 5-6; Activity- Finalisation of geodatabase, register, report, and map atlas
7. Eligibility and Qualifications
Prospective bidders should demonstrate:
Eligible bidders include geospatial firms and consultancies, individual professional consultants, and university / institutional remote-sensing laboratories. LIVE FOUNDATION actively welcomes bids from individual consultants and academic labs that can meet the requirements below:
- Proven experience in remote sensing, GIS, and forest/land-cover or restoration mapping, preferably in Indian forest landscapes (relevant sample work or references to be provided).
- Technical capacity in NDVI/change-detection analysis, supervised/unsupervised classification, and accuracy assessment, with the ability to deliver editable GIS layers.
- Capacity to conduct field validation in remote forest terrain, ideally with experience working alongside tribal/forest-fringe communities.
- Valid registration / legal status and applicable statutory documents (GST, PAN, registration certificate, as relevant).
8. Quotation Submission Requirements
Bidders must submit the following, clearly separated into a technical and a financial component:
- Technical Quotation: brief methodology, proposed data sources and tools, team profile/CVs, relevant past experience, sample maps (if available), and a week-wise work plan within the 4–6 week timeline.
- Financial Quotation: all-inclusive cost as per the format in the Annexure, with taxes shown separately. Quote in INR.
- Compliance documents: registration, PAN/GST, and any references requested in Section 7.
Validity of quotation: the quoted price should remain valid for at least 30 days from the submission date.
9. Evaluation Criteria
Quotations will be evaluated on a combination of technical merit and financial competitiveness. Indicative weighting:
Criterion/ Indicative weight:
- Relevant experience and past mapping work- 25 %
- Soundness of proposed methodology and tools -30%
- Team qualifications and field-validation capacity- 15%
- Financial quotation (cost competitiveness)- 30%
LIVE FOUNDATION reserves the right to accept or reject any or all quotations, in full or in part, without assigning a reason, and to seek clarifications from bidders.
10. General Terms and Conditions
- Intellectual property and data: all outputs are the sole property of LIVE FOUNDATION, as stated in Section 5.
- Confidentiality: the vendor shall treat all project information, community data, and locations as confidential.
- Payment terms: Linked to deliverable milestones. 20% on inception; 30 % on draft outputs and remaining 50% on complete submission of the report.
- Quality and acceptance: deliverables are subject to review and acceptance by LIVE FOUNDATION, including verification of the reported accuracy.
- Community sensitivity: field activities must respect Gram Sabha protocols and local community norms.
Annexure — Financial Quotation Format
Bidders should itemise costs as below (add rows as needed). Optional add-ons must be quoted separately. All amounts in INR.
Part 1 — Base Assignment (specify unit and amount against each)
- Satellite imagery acquisition and pre-processing
- Geospatial analysis and classification (LULC, administrative boundary, road network, human settlement canopy, change detection)
- Patch delineation and regeneration-potential classification
- Invasive species mapping
- Field validation — vendor sample (travel, personnel, days)
- Field protocol design, Kobo form, and training of community teams
- Geodatabase, register, methodology/accuracy report, and map atlas
- Any other (specify)
Applicable taxes & Total
Part 2 — Optional Add-Ons (priced separately)
- Commercial high-resolution imagery for selected patches
- Drone / UAV survey of shortlisted patches (incl. permissions)
- Any other optional (specify)
Applicable taxes & Total