Union Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari on Monday said Delhi’s buses could one day run on hydrogen produced from segregated municipal waste, as he outlined his vision for converting garbage into clean fuel.

Speaking at a youth conclave organised by the Delhi BJP, Gadkari said municipal waste could be processed through biodigesters to generate hydrogen, which could then be used to power public transport, PTI news agency reported.

“This (garbage) will be segregated and used to produce hydrogen through biodigesters. The buses in Delhi will run on it. All of this is possible,” he said as reported by the agency.

The Union minister also spoke about future transport technologies, saying he envisions a time when vehicles will use water to generate hydrogen for operation.

Responding to skepticism over the idea, Gadkari said, “People have asked how this will happen. Has there ever been a time in the last 50 years when something I predicted did not come to pass?”

Highlighting the use of waste in infrastructure projects, Gadkari said around 8 million tonnes of garbage from Delhi’s landfill sites have already been used in the construction of expressways.