Raipur, March 16: Chhattisgarh police are on high alert following reports of the arrival of Maoists from Nepal in the state.

?We have heard about the infiltration of top Maoist leaders from Nepal into the interiors of Chhattisgarh. The state police are verifying the reports,? director-general of police .P. Rathod told The Telegraph today.

Senior police and intelligence officials feel that the rebels have landed in the state in search of more than a ?safe haven?.

?Since we all know that the Communist Party of India (Maoist) operates in Chhattisgarh, Andhra Pradesh, Orissa, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh and Jharkhand, the presence of the rebel leaders from Nepal has to be seen in the wider perspective,? an intelligence official said.

Another official said they have spotted armed Naxalites with Mongoloid features at Bijapur and Madian in Rajnandgaon district. ?But we don?t know if they are here to receive or impart training,? he added.

Chief minister Raman Singh recently said there are 15 Naxalite training camps in the Abu Jamad forests of Bastar. Chhattisgarh, sources said, has the highest number of such camps among all the Naxalite-affected states.

?Maoists from Andhra Pradesh and Chhattisgarh have technical expertise in planting landmines and using sophisticated weapons. Since Chhattisgarh is considered safer than Andhra Pradesh, most of the training camps have been set up here,? the official said.

According to sources, the local Maoists have hiked the rate of levy traders have to pay. ?The Maoists summoned a transporter and asked him to pay about 50 per cent of the ?annual tax? at the earliest,? a transport operator said.

He added that the Maoists claimed to be in ?urgent need? of money keeping in mind the developments in Andhra Pradesh and Nepal.