Thiruvananthapuram airport to suspend flights for temple procession: Timings, how to watch it live

Kerala's historic Sree Padmanabhaswamy Temple's 'Painkuni festival' will conclude with the 'Arattu' (ending ritual) today at the Shankhumugham Beach in Thiruvananthapuram. The festival, marked by massive fibreglass figures of the Pandavas, is held for ten days. The procession of the fest starts at 5 pm today and will proceed from the temple's western entrance. As always, the procession will pass through the Thiruvananthapuram airport runway in the evening. Therefore, flight operations at the airport will be suspended from 4.45 pm to 9 pm. 

Why the airport stops operations
The Thiruvananthapuram International Airport was established at a time when it was under the erstwhile Travancore Kingdom. The then king, Sree Chithira Thirunal Balarama Varma, agreed to give away the land for the airport on the condition that the temple procession be allowed to pass through the region twice every year, as it had always been for centuries. Therefore, every year, around March-April, the runway closes for the Painkuni Festival, and in October-November, for the temple's Alpassi festival, to accommodate the procession to Shankhumugham beach. 

The procession
The temple procession is conducted adhering to a strict dress code. Men are expected to wear Kerala-style mundus (dhotis), and women also wear saris or similar traditional clothing. The procession, led by the head of the royal family, also includes caparisoned elephants, idols of deities and percussion instrumentalists. Generally, only members of the royal family take part in it, and tourists and devotees watch it with reverence as the procession passes by. The procession will be streamed live on the Thiruvananthapuram airport's Facebook and Instagram pages at 5.30 pm.