The Sylhet District Bus-Minibus Workers' Union has called off the indefinite strike within six hours of the announcement on assurances from the authorities.
After a meeting with the Deputy Commissioner of Sylhet on Tuesday evening, the organization withdrew from the decision. District Bus-Minibus Workers Union President Mainul Islam confirmed the matter.
Earlier, the strike was called across Sylhet from 6am on Wednesday after stopping the movement of buses on the Sylhet-Tamabil highway for two consecutive days.
They announced the withdrawal of the transport strike after Sylhet Deputy Commissioner Md Mujibur Rahman assured the workers that their two demands would be met.
Earlier in the day, the transport workers said the strike was called to demand the smooth movement of buses on the Sylhet-Tamabil road and the arrest of Jaintapur Upazila Parishad Chairman and Upazila Awami League President Kamal Ahmed.
According to sources, five people were killed in a collision between a bus and an easy bike in the Darvast area of Jaintapur upazila on the Sylhet-Tamabil highway on Friday night.
In a meeting convened by the "Shalish Samannay Committee" of Greater Jaintia's 17 Pargana' in protest against the incident, the demand was made to lay off the unskilled and unlicensed drivers of buses on the Sylhet-Tamabil highway and stop the movement of fitness-free vehicles.
On Saturday, 8 July, some locals led by Jaintapur Upazila Parishad Chairman Kamal Ahmed stayed on the highway and checked the licences of the bus drivers. They seized the vehicles of unlicensed drivers.
The Sylhet District Road Transport Workers Union has called for a strike on the Sylhet-Tamabil road on 9 July to protest the incident and demand the arrest of Upazila Parishad Chairman Kamal Ahmed.