BHUBANESWAR: The State Government has reiterated its demand for waiver of deployment cost of Central Armed Paramilitary Forces (CAPF) in the State even as the Union Ministry of Home Affairs has not responded to several of its requests in this regard.
The Centre has asked the State Government to pay Rs 1,450 crore towards the cost of deployment of CAPF, engaged in fighting the Left Wing Extremists (LWEs). The State Government is, however, of the opinion that combating the LWEs is the joint responsibility of the Centre and the State.
Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik raised the issue during his meeting with Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh on Saturday. The State Government has trained and deployed over 30,000 police personnel with own resources to contain the Maoist menace. At present, 18 Battalions of CRPF and BSF Jawans are deployed in Odisha.
Stating that containment of the LWE is a collective responsibility of the Centre and the State Government, Naveen said the Centre should reconsider its existing policy and bear the entire cost of deployment of CAPF for anti-Maoist operations.
However, the Union Home Minister is reported to have maintained that waiver of CAPF deployment is a common demand from all the Maoist-affected States.
Official sources said the Union Home Ministry is not favourably disposed towards the waiver of CAPF deployment charge. The Ministry is of the opinion that due to overall constraints of resources and given the larger fiscal space now available with the State Government after the recommendations of Fourteenth Finance Commission (FFC), it is not feasible to exempt the State Government from paying the deployment charges.
Official sources, however, maintained that the Centre’s decision to delink eight schemes from Central funding and change the pattern of sharing of funds for Centrally Sponsored Schemes (CSS) will substantially reduce the quantum of assistance for the State’s annual plan.
In a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the Chief Minister has requested him to personally intervene in the matter and direct the Ministry of Home Affairs to waive the cost of deployment of CAPF as the State is in no position to pay the amount.
