Cash-strapped Indian airline Go First filed for bankruptcy proceedings on Tuesday (2), blaming "faulty" Pratt & Whitney engines for the grounding of about half its fleet.
The move marks the first major airline collapse in India since Jet Airways filed for bankruptcy in 2019, and underscores the fierce competition in a sector dominated by IndiGo and the entry of newer operators such as Akasa Air.
Go First said its filing with the National Company Law Tribunal comes after Pratt & Whitney, the exclusive engine supplier for the airline's Airbus A320neo aircraft fleet, refused to comply with an order to release spare leased engines to the airline that would have allowed it return to full operations.
Pratt & Whitney, a Raytheon Technologies unit, was not immediately available for comment.
An issue with Pratt & Whitney engines that safety authorities had warned could shut down a plane's engine mid-flight has dogged Indian airlines for the past few years.
Analysts have said bigger rival IndiGo has been able to withstand the impact better, thanks to its larger fleet and a deeper pocket.
Go First, owned by the Wadia Group and formerly known as GoAir, also said on its website that it had cancelled flights scheduled for May 3 to May 5 due to "operational reasons".
"The government of India has been assisting the airline in every possible manner," India's civil aviation minister Jyotiraditya Scindia said in a statement. "The issue has also been taken up with the stakeholders involved."
The collapse could benefit rival airlines as the industry tries to meet a surge in post-pandemic air travel.
"The sudden disruption in operations is likely to benefit other players and increase airfares due to supply constraint," wrote Jinesh Joshi, a research analyst with Prabhudas Lilladher.
The move took Go First's lenders by surprise, two bankers aware of the matter told Reuters.
The lenders met Go First's management a few weeks ago, but no intimation was given, one of the bankers said. Lenders will meet soon to assess the situation and decide on the future course of action, they said.
Go First has Rs 56 billion (£560million) in rated Indian bank debt, according to a January report by Acuite Ratings. Central Bank of India and Bank of Baroda have the largest share.
"I am a little stunned to hear of them file for bankruptcy," said Mark Martin, CEO at aviation consulting firm Martin Consulting LLC. "I still feel that this might not be the end of Go First. This must be a vehicle and a means for somebody new to take over."
The number of grounded aircraft "due to Pratt & Whitney's faulty engines" increased from seven per cent of its fleet in December 2019 to 31 per cent in December 2020 and 50 per cent in December 2022, the airline said.
The groundings cost Go First Rs 108bn (£1.08bn) in lost revenues and additional expenses.
The woes, which forced Go First to delay its planned $440 million IPO in 2021, also resulted in an erosion in its market share to 6.9 per cent in March from 8.4 per cent in January, latest data from the Indian aviation regulator showed.
The airline was seeking to raise funds and the Wadia Group was reported to be in talks to either sell a majority stake or completely exit its shareholding. Wadia Group did not respond to an e-mail seeking comment.
The airline said the groundings had also driven some lessors to repossess aircraft, draw down letters of credit and notify further withdrawal of aircraft," the airline said.
Go First has not updated its employees about its future, according to two pilots, who did not want to be named. It has been delaying paying salaries to its pilots.
(Reuters)
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Anurag Bajpayee's Gradiant: The water company tackling a global crisis
In a world increasingly defined by scarcity, one resource is emerging as the most quietly decisive factor in the future of industry, sustainability, and even geopolitics: water. Yet, while the headlines are dominated by energy transition and climate pledges, few companies working behind the scenes on water issues have attracted much public attention. One of them is Gradiant, a Boston-based firm that has, over the past decade, grown into a key player in the underappreciated but critical sector of industrial water treatment.
A Company Born from MIT, and from Urgency
Founded in 2013 by Anurag Bajpayee and Prakash Govindan, two researchers with strong ties to the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), Gradiant began as a scrappy start-up with a deceptively simple premise: make water work harder. At a time when discussions about climate change were centred almost exclusively on carbon emissions and renewable energy, the trio saw water scarcity looming in the background.
Their insight was that some of the world’s largest industries—semiconductors, pharmaceuticals, chemicals, food and beverage—were facing acute water-related challenges long before the general public grasped the issue. “Without water, these industries don’t just slow down; they stop,” Bajpayee has often remarked. What Gradiant offered was not just a way to save water, but a way to rethink how it is used, recycled, and valued.
The Engineers Behind the Mission
Anurag Bajpayee, the company’s CEO, whose academic path took him to MIT, where he completed a PhD in Mechanical Engineering focused on water treatment technologies. It was there that he met Govindan, a fellow engineer and now Gradiant's co-founder and COO, whose expertise complemented his in fluid mechanics and process engineering.
Unlike many founders who drift towards the language of venture capital and corporate strategy, Anurag Bajpayee and his team remained grounded in the technical problem: how to make industrial water treatment more efficient, more affordable, and more sustainable. The company still bears the imprint of its founders’ engineering roots. Gradiant is less Silicon Valley startup and more MIT lab, albeit one that has quietly expanded across Asia, the Middle East, Europe and North America.
What Gradiant Actually Does
The company specializes in designing and building bespoke water treatment and reuse systems for industrial clients. Its technologies are aimed at enabling factories and plants to reclaim water that would otherwise be discarded as waste, reducing both the amount of water withdrawn from natural sources and the volume of contaminated water discharged.
At the heart of Gradiant’s portfolio are proprietary technologies such as Counter Flow Reverse Osmosis (CFRO), Carrier Gas Extraction (CGE) and Selective Ion Recovery (SIR), developed from the Gradiant founders’ early research at MIT. Unlike traditional methods like reverse osmosis, these systems are designed to handle highly contaminated or complex wastewater streams, enabling clients to extract clean water even from previously unusable sources.
But Gradiant does not sell “one-size-fits-all” machines. Each project is tailored to the customer’s unique needs. For a semiconductor plant in Singapore, this might mean achieving ultrapure water reuse levels of 98%; for a food and beverage factory in Texas, it might be about safely treating wastewater for discharge while minimising energy consumption. The company's approach—sometimes called "solutioneering" internally—is both its competitive advantage and its raison d'être.
Expansion Without the Usual Hype
Gradiant’s growth has been quietly impressive. From its first commercial project in the oil and gas sector, it has gone on to complete over 500 installations worldwide. The company has raised more than $400 million in funding from a mix of institutional investors and private equity firms, achieving so-called “unicorn” status, with a valuation reportedly over $1 billion.
Unlike many green tech firms, Gradiant’s expansion has not been accompanied by flashy marketing campaigns or grandiose statements. Instead, the company has preferred to build credibility client by client, particularly in Asia, where water-intensive industries and growing environmental pressures make its services indispensable. Anurag Bajpayee, never one to speak in superlatives, frames the company’s expansion as a “response to urgent need” rather than a triumph of business.
Inside Gradiant’s Operations
At its core, Gradiant is still an engineering-first company. Anurag Bajpayee and Govindan, both technically trained and heavily involved in the company’s operations, have instilled a culture where R&D is not just a department but the lifeblood of the business. The firm currently holds more than 250 patents globally, a testament to its ongoing commitment to innovation.
But Gradiant’s success is not just about technology. The company has differentiated itself by offering not just equipment but full-service solutions, including project design, construction, operations, and maintenance. This full-stack approach has been particularly attractive to clients in highly regulated industries, who need water management solutions that work seamlessly and reliably without requiring deep in-house expertise.
Gradiant’s clients include some of the world’s largest manufacturers, including Fortune 500 companies in sectors like microelectronics, pharmaceuticals, and energy. Some, like semiconductor producers, rely on Gradiant to help them meet stringent water reuse targets while maintaining ultra-clean production environments.
Navigating a Changing World
Gradiant operates at the intersection of several converging trends: climate change, regulatory pressure, and industrial decarbonisation. In many regions, water scarcity has become the limiting factor for industrial growth, sometimes more than energy availability or supply chain constraints.
While public attention often focuses on domestic water use, it is industries that consume the lion’s share of freshwater. Gradiant's pitch is straightforward: industries will have to do more with less, and Gradiant offers the tools to make that possible.
Anurag Bajpayee is keenly aware of the paradox that water, despite being vital, is often underpriced and undervalued, especially when compared to energy. “We don’t pay what it’s worth, only what it costs,” he told an audience at a recent conference. Yet, the landscape is shifting. Regulators, investors, and companies themselves are increasingly acknowledging water as both a business risk and a social responsibility.
What's Next for Gradiant?
Looking ahead, Gradiant appears poised to play a central role as industries adapt to water scarcity. Yet, Anurag Bajpayee remains cautious about the hype cycle. "The problem we’re working on isn’t going anywhere," he says. "It’s not a question of innovation alone, but of execution—of making sure these solutions actually reach the places that need them most."
In an era where water risk is increasingly material to business, Gradiant’s quiet, technically grounded approach may prove to be exactly what is needed.
(The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of Eastern Eye. The publication does not endorse or take responsibility for the accuracy of any statements made by the author.)