KATHMANDU, APRIL 24
In order to solve the legal complexity seen in the registration of vehicles manufactured in Nepal, a decision was taken to submit a proposal to the Council of Ministers after amending the related laws.
A meeting between the Cabinet and relevant government bodies today directed the authorities concerned to solve the issue immediately. It has been decided that the Ministry of Physical Infrastructure and Transport will do the necessary for registration of vehicles manufactured in Nepal within three days by making necessary amendments to the 'Traffic Management Directive 2004'.
Similarly, further arrangements will be made to submit the proposal to the Council of Ministers within seven days to make necessary amendments to the Motor Vehicle and Transport Management Rules 1997 for registration of vehicles manufactured in Nepal.
Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal yesterday said he had taken the issue very seriously and directed relevant agencies to proceed with the process of legal arrangement to register made-in- Nepal vehicles.
"I have directed the relevant agencies through the Chief Secretary to immediately proceed with the legal arrangement to register domestically manufactured vehicles and promote domestic production," Dahal tweeted.
Earlier, concerns were raised by domestic vehicle manufacturers and citizens over lack of rules for registering vehicles made in Nepal. Although Section 20 of the Motor Vehicles and Transport Management Act 2019 for Bagmati Province mentions registration of domestically manufactured and assembled vehicles, the protocol for submitting import notification letter from the Customs Clearance Office for registration had confused both manufacturers and government authorities.
In a story published on April 20, THT had reported how lack of regulations for registering vehicles made in the country had led to friction between traffic authorities and owners of such vehicles and forced manufacturers to halt production.
A version of this article appears in the print on April 25, 2023, of The Himalayan Times.
