Lumbini. The Tulsipur, Butwal bench of the High Court has issued a mandate to operate electric vehicles under the Lumbini Development Fund by changing them to green number plates. A joint bench of Justices Rajeshwor Tiwari and Punyashila Dawadi Ghimire has issued a mandate to convert the vehicles, which have been lying idle for a long time, to green number plates and operate them for tourism purposes.
The High Court has set a time limit of one month to convert 19 electric vehicles, including five buses and 14 vans, from white number plates to green number plates, which were transferred to the Lumbini Development Fund for tourism purposes in 2078 BS from the Asian Development Bank’s ‘Green Energy Fund’ through the Ministry of Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation of the Government of Nepal.
‘As per Section ‘B’ of Part 1 of Schedule 2 of the Vehicle and Transport Management Act 2049, those vehicles with white number plates shall be converted to green number plates. Since there is a legal way to change the plate, an order will be issued in the name of the defendant to change the said vehicle to a green number plate and bring it into operation for tourism purposes within one month from the date of receiving the information of the present order by following the same path,’ the court order reads.
In the writ petition filed by Ram Bikash Chaudhary on behalf of Madhesh Human Rights Home (Mahuri Home), making the Lumbini Provincial Government, Ministry of Transport Management, Lumbini Development Fund, Lumbini, Transport Management Office Butwal and District Administration Office Rupandehi as opponents, advocates Resham Adhikari and Baburam Bhusal argued in favor of the petitioner.
Also, Chief Attorney General Yamlal Khanal, on behalf of the opposing offices, Senior Advocate Liladhar Marasini, Assistant Advocate Ramesh Pokharel and Advocate Parbati Adhikari argued.
Although the number plates should have been changed as per the agreement of the Ministry of Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation of the Government of Nepal, the decision of the Lumbini Provincial Government and the directives of the Public Accounts Committee, the Transport Management Office, Butwal did not implement them, so the vehicles could not be put into operation for a long time, said Akram Khan, coordinator of the Lumbini Save Maha Abhiyan.
‘Although the Lumbini Development Fund had prepared a draft report and working procedure in 2079 BS, it could not be implemented because the number plates had not been changed,’ said Meghnath Acharya, a writ petitioner and member of the Lumbini Save Struggle Committee. ‘With the mandate, the fund should now make the necessary changes and invest in electric buses and The way has been opened to operate the van.’ Currently, the fund is operating two buses through the collection of donations. Acharya informed that this decree has paved the way for the systematic operation of electric vehicles for the convenience of tourists in the Lumbini area.
On 2077 BS, 14 electric vans and five electric buses were brought with a grant of 130 million from the Asian Development Bank to make Lumbini pollution-free. White-plate vehicles cannot be used for any other work except for government work. The Department of Transport Management, Butwal, did not allow the number change, saying that there is no provision in the Transport Management Act to change the number of government vehicles with white plates to green or any other number plate.
With the support of the ADB grant, an investment of Rs 350 million was made under the Clean Energy Project, including 14 electric vans, five buses, a solar power plant and a charging station. Clean Energy paid Rs 80 million in customs duty when the vehicles were brought to Nepal. The buses, which are air-conditioned, disabled-friendly and have automatic doors, have a capacity of 19 seats and the van has a capacity of five seats. The buses/vans, which can travel up to 400 kilometers after being fully charged, have a facility to pay by card.
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