Thiruvananthapuram: A Rs.60 million "ayurveda village" consisting of 16 cottages are being in an eco-friendly way under 'a resort within a resort' concept near the famed Kovalam beach in Kerala.

The village is slated to open on Nov 1 inside the Poovar Island Resort.

"The highlight of the village is that we have 16 cottages which are made of mud and has insulated roofs and walls so as to keep the heat away and no air-conditioning is required," M.R. Narayanan, the managing director of Poovar Island Resort, told sources.

Poovar Island Resorts shot into fame almost seven years back when the country's first floating cottages were launched in the backwaters. At present, there are 16 floating cottages overlooking the Arabian Sea.

Narayanan, who came up with the concept of 'a resort within a resort', said the ayurveda resort is a unique one as it is built in a 12 acre campus which rests inside the Poovar Island Resort. Dubai-based Kerala businessman Kabeer Khader is the chairman of the resort.

Included in the ayurveda village is the largest ayurveda spa in the country, covering 20,000 square feet.

"There is a very big lounge and 10 treatment rooms. The basic tenets of ayurveda are not diluted. Each room has water bodies, a private garden and enough light and air coming in, which are musts for those undergoing ayurveda treatment," he said.

The ayurveda village has a state-of-the-art kitchen, which would cooking according to the principles of ancient Indian medical texts. IANS