FAISALABAD, March 31: Hundreds of wagon drivers and conductors staged a sit-in outside the district government complex here on Wednesday to mark their protest against the closure of various routes.

The urban wagon drivers gathered outside the Katchery Bazaar, holding banners and placards inscribed with slogans against the district administration and the transport authorities.

A group of protesters was beating chests and chanting slogans "urban wagon bahal karo aur zulm band karo." They marched through various roads before staging the sit-in outside the office of the district Nazim, demanding immediate restoration of routes.

They also blocked traffic on the Zila Council Road, Katchery Road and the Circular Road for hours. They said the local administration had cancelled four of the wagon routes after the introduction of buses.

This, they said, had brought over 15,000 families on the verge of starvation. The protesters demanded the chief minister and the Punjab governor to take stock of the situation and order restoration of the routes.