Union Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari has recently claimed that buses in Delhi could possibly run on hydrogen produced from segregated municipal waste in the future.
Addressing youth conclave organised by the Delhi BJP, he shared his vision of a world where vehicles will use water to generate hydrogen to operate.
"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?" Gadkari said.
According to the Union Minister, around eight million tons of garbage from landfill sites in Delhi have already been utilised for the construction of expressways. He further announced plans to eliminate garbage across the country by 2027.
"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," Gadkari said.
Apart from fuel usage, he highlighted the economic potential of waste management, noting that the municipal corporation in his parliamentary constituency is earning nearly Rs 325 crore annually by selling treated wastewater.
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The Ethanol, Isobutanol Push
Gadkari recently has spoken about mixing isobutanol in diesel. This push follows the successful rollout of 20% ethanol blending in petrol. Speaking at the launch of India's first flex-fuel passenger vehicle by Maruti Suzuki on World Environment Day, in the presence of Petroleum Minister Hardeep Singh Puri, Gadkari said ethanol cannot be blended directly with diesel and that the government is therefore developing isobutanol from ethanol. "Isobutanol can be an alternative to diesel. We are also working on allowing 15 per cent isobutanol blending in diesel," the minister said, adding that testing has already begun for construction and agricultural equipment.
Gadkari also cited a pilot demonstration, saying engineers have successfully operated two generator sets on 100 percent ethanol and isobutanol, which he said proves engines can be developed to run on these fuels.
MoRTH Secretary V Umashankar told the CII Multimodal Transportation and Logistics Summit that a mandate for blending isobutanol with diesel is "quite likely" before the end of 2026, after BPCL's research produced results described as "very encouraging." The proposal, he said, is still under consideration, with technical evaluations and regulatory processes expected before any rollout.
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