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DHAKA, Wednesday (AFP) Bangladeshi authorities struck a compromise deal with owners of Dhaka's notoriously polluting three-wheeler taxis to phase out the vehicles by the start of next year, officials said.

The deal came ahead of a threatened strike next week by tens of thousands of owners and drivers against the government's original plan to ban all of the two-stroke-engine taxis from September 1.

Under the new plan, 5,500 of the taxis will be allowed to operate until December 31 after getting clearance from the environment authorities.

A complete ban on all of the vehicles, numbering more than 17,000, will be effective from the New Year's Day instead of September 1, transport officials said.

Bangladesh's Communication Minister, Nazmul Huda, and Environment Minister, Shahjahan Siraj, negotiated the deal for the government with union leaders representating owners and drivers.

In other concessions, the government, which plans to immediately import 5,000 four-stroke environment-friendly three-wheelers, will sell some of them to affected taxi owners and drivers on easy instalments.

In return, the owners agreed to phase out immediately 11,500 old and defective taxies that produce more pollution.

Early this month thousands of three-wheeler taxi drivers in Dhaka staged a strike in protest at the government proposal to ban their vehicles.

Some 2,000 striking owners and drivers had asked the government to reconsider its decision and allow time to upgrade their vehicles using pollution-control devices. 

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