The centre Thursday rushed additional paramilitary forces to troubled West Midnapore district to tackle the Maoists, even as the left wing ultras said they were prepared for talks provided the troopers were withdrawn and a ceasefire declared in seven states.
Six companies of Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) would be deputed for areas around the Lalgarh belt in West Midnapore where the security forces of the centre and the state, in a joint operation, are engaged in a fierce fight with the Maoists, an official said.
The state government had asked the centre for more central forces due to the Maoists' continued killing and abduction of policemen and communists and tribal leaders opposed to them.
Meanwhile, the banned Communist Party of India-Maoist (CPI-Maoist) politburo member Koteshwar Rao alias Kishenji told a section of the media that the main precondition for talks was ceasefire on both sides.
He demanded that the central government immediately pull out paramilitary forces engaged in fighting the rebels in the seven states of Chhattisgarh, Orissa, Bihar, West Bengal, Jharkhand, Andhra Pradesh and Maharashtra.