Flight operations at the international airport in Thiruvananthapuram will be temporarily halted for five hours on Monday to accommodate the traditional “Arattu” procession of Sree Padmanabhaswamy temple passing through the runway, as confirmed by Thiruvananthapuram International Airport Ltd (TIAL).
This ritual aligns with a long-standing tradition associated with the Travancore Royals, PTI reported.
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The TIAL announced that flight services would be suspended between 4 pm and 9 pm to allow for the Alpassi Arattu procession organized by the Sree Padmanabhaswamy temple.
Reportedly, four flights have had their schedules adjusted due to the ceremony, according to PTI. Once the procession concludes and returns to the temple, the runway will be cleaned and inspected before the resumption of flight services.
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The airport has been pausing operations and rescheduling flights twice every year for decades to enable the bi-annual centuries-old ceremonial procession of the shrine to pass through the runway.
The practice of the temple procession passing along the route to reach the Shangumugham beach for the holy bath of the idols began centuries ago and it has been continuing even after the establishment of the airport in 1932.
When the airport was constructed in the particular place, the then Travancore King Sree Chithira Thirunal had made it clear that the facility would be open to the public for 363 days in a year but for two days for Lord Padmanabha, the titular deity of the royal family, according to historians.
(With PTI inputs)