Himachal opposes pullout of central forces from Chamba

"There is a move to withdraw paramilitary forces deployed on the border of Chamba district. I'm going to take up the issue with the home ministry not to withdraw the forces," Virbhadra Singh told reporters.

"Ours is a peaceful state, but there is disturbance on the other side of the border. Jammu and Kashmir may also be peaceful these days. But I'm writing to the home minister that the forces should not be withdrawn from the (Himachal) border until peace is restored there permanently," he said.

Officials told IANS that the central government had conveyed to the state that the Indo-Tibet Border Police (ITBP) deployed along the border would be withdrawn soon.

The state has already expressed apprehensions that the possibility of terrorists sneaking into the hill state cannot be ruled out if ITBP was withdrawn.

The hill state shares 214 km of border with Doda, Kishtwar and Kathua districts of Jammu and Kashmir.