Odisha on Thursday urged the Centre to waive the charges towards deployment of Central Armed Police Forces in the Maoist-hit areas of the state.

Maintaining that “left wing extremism” is a national issue and both the state and the Centre should fight it together, Odisha asked the central government to consider its demand to waive an amount of Rs 4,561.24 crore. The ministry of home affairs had asked the Odisha government to pay the amount for the deployment of central forces in the state.

In a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday, chief minister Naveen Patnaik said: “Around 15 battalions of state police have been raised, specifically to combat left wing extremism, 30,000 posts in police cadres have also been created including armed formations along with specialised training centres and other logistic facilities for their deployment. Thus, considering the face that left wing extremism is an issue of joint responsibility and the state government is doing its lots to combat the menace, Government of India may appreciate the difficulties of states like Odisha while charging for such deployment of central forces for dealing with left wing extremism.”

Naveen also reminded the Prime Minister that “left wing extremism” is a national issue and a grave threat to the integrity of the nation. This challenge, he said, had to be addressed both by the state and the Centre.

Besides, the government of Odisha has been proactive in spending from its scanty resources and deploying security forces despite its tight fiscal situation, the chief minister said.