The history of an using of  Electric Vehicle (EV) in Nepal is relatively new. In 1975 trolley bus system was introduced by Chinese Government along 13km route between Tripureshwor and Surya Binayak was first EV in Nepal. After ward the various small to large electric vehicles has been imported to Nepal and by far SAFA Tempo dominates other electric vehicles in Nepal. 

 
SAFA is a Nepali word for “clean’’. SAFA tempos are the electric vehicles in Kathmandu valley which was brought to Nepal in 1996. Currently there are more than 600 SAFA tempos in Kathmandu valley alone. Safa Tempo is an electric vehicle operated by 72 V capacity rechargeable lead acid battery.

SAFAtempo is playing an important role in pollution control and emission control in Kathmandu valley. Around 120,000 passengers benefit from the service provided by the SAFA tempo in 17 different routes within the city, on a daily basis. There are multihued advantages of SAFA Tempo (Electric Vehicle) as it contributes Zero emission thus emits less pollution. It produces Low noise level and most appropriate for Short distances & low speed – thus appropriate for cities like Kathmandu where streets are narrow, traffic speed is low and travel distances are also short. It also promotes the use of clean energy (hydro-electricity) thus reduces the use of fossil fuel. It Uses off peak hour electricity since battery are charged during nights. Overall SAFA tempo seems to be boon for the cities areas where there is the maximum air pollution. The air quality of Kathmandu valley is declining day by day due to the huge emission of gasoline, fossil fuel vehicles.
 
Once upon a time, Nepal had the leading zero carbon emission public electric-vehicle industry. Yes, that's a fairy tale now because the amount of carbon emissions by vehicles in Nepal doesn't tell us we are even near contributing to the zero carbon emission. There are a lot of challenges in running such vehicles in our county. Though it has proved to be promising one for the Zero carbon emission but still lagging far behind for its proper extension and utilization. Due to the faulty government regulations, safa-tempo owners are currently facing an unanticipated crisis where they are required to pay eight years of income tax at once and if seen running without the proper renewed document then they are being fined for that too. Government denied to provide any discounts on the taxes. In addition to that, custom duty was increased from 10 to 40 percent and the excise duty was fixed at the highest rate i.e. 80 percent during the budget for Fiscal Year 2077/78. 
 

To sum up, Electric vehicles have been considered as great prospect in the country like Nepal where there is huge  potential for renewable energy like hydropower and solar power. Adapting green energy based transportation is the need of the hour because fossil fuels are on limited time and cannot fulfill the ever-increasing demand. CO2 is prime constituent of the vehicle exhaust and a major greenhouse gas. By the use of Electric Vehicle we can drastically reduce amount of CO2 gas from vehicles in the atmosphere. And, it will ensure smooth transportation since it is not reliant on imported fossil and ultimately can achieve zero carbon emission. The government sector, private stakeholder must provide efficient laws for the proper operation of such Clean transport system in the country.

REFERENCES;

http://www.aeloi.com/blog/safa-tempo-the-past-present-the-future-of-ev-industry-of-nepal

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2019-08-26/why-nepal-once-led-the-world-in-electric-buses

http://www.researchgate.net/publication/282007156_Estimation_of_Amount_of_CO2_Reduction_by_Safa_Tempo_Electric-Three_Wheelers_in_Kathmandu_Valley