New Delhi, Dec 20 (IANS) Thousands of autorickshaw drivers Saturday held a protest meet here against the government's proposal to phase out their vehicles from Delhi's arterial roads and replace them with small taxis.

Around 5,000 drivers organised a rally at the Ramleela Ground under the banner of NyayaBhoomi, an NGO, and said the government's decision would only cause inconvenience to the general public.

Rakesh Agarwal, secretary of NyayaBhoomi, told IANS: 'In the past 20 years, the government has never given reasonable fare to three-wheeler drivers even after several protests. If the government engages with the responsible drivers, NGOs and eminent citizens on reforms, the entire autorickshaw sector can be reformed within a week.'

The meet, supported by several unions, also discussed issues like fare hike, auto finance mafia and complete absence of authorised stands.

'Auto drivers are forced to overcharge, for which the government is responsible,' Agarwal said.

A Delhi transport department official said: 'We will not completely phase out autorickshaws. We will offer the permit holders to replace their old and worn-out vehicles with cars or restrict their vehicles to residential colonies.'

'They will not be allowed to come on arterial and radial roads,' he said.

The official said small cars or taxis would run on arterial roads and longer routes, while three-wheelers would be restricted to smaller routes, especially congested areas.