Nepal, July 16 -- As with everything else in life, decisions come in all shapes and sizes. Some are boilerplate, some far-reaching with major implications for generations to come. In ideal circumstances, those entrusted with the job of making decisions hopefully come through every single time. But as humans, we are all fallible. No matter how good the intentions, ill-advised decisions are made all the time. The Nepal government's decision in late May to hike taxes on electric vehicles is one such. The 2020-21 budget raised customs duty on electric vehicles to 40 percent, introduced excise duty ranging from 30 to 80 percent and kept VAT unchanged at 13 percent. Previously, EVs only paid up to 10 percent customs and 13 percent VAT.

The pol...