Copyright newskarnataka
Bengaluru — At the city’s major aviation hub, Kempegowda International Airport, travellers reported a strikingly quiet atmosphere on 25 October as the four-day Chhath Puja festival began. A passenger, identified as Ashish Kumar, filmed his walk through the departure area and expressed surprise at the unusually low crowd levels. Low volumes at the airport In his video, Kumar said, “I’ve never seen Bengaluru airport this empty before. There’s hardly any crowd as far as I can see. I’m standing in the departure area and even here, everything looks unusually quiet.”A text overlay on his clip read: “Bengaluru airport no crowd.” The footage was shared on Instagram by user @weekendtraveller_official, drawing thousands of reactions from surprised netizens. Festival context Chhath Puja is a major festival in large parts of north India, including Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, Jharkhand and West Bengal. Devotees offer prayers to the Sun God and Chhathi Maiya over four days, beginning six days after Diwali.The 2025 festivities began on Saturday, 25 October, and will conclude on Tuesday, 28 October. Many working professionals from southern cities travel back home to celebrate the occasion, leading to a brief lull at airports in metro areas like Bengaluru and Hyderabad. Why the airport seemed empty While the article does not cite official data, it suggests that many people may have already travelled earlier in the week, leaving the airport quieter on that particular day. It is also possible that altered travel schedules or flight timings contributed to the reduced crowd.The observation is based on user-generated content and not officially verified. Nonetheless, it aligns with the general trend of migration during major north Indian festivals. Implications and outlook For travellers anticipating heavy crowds during festive travel, the scene at Kempegowda suggests a rare window of smoother check-ins, shorter queues and less congestion—at least temporarily.Airport officials may still need to be alert, as crowd patterns can shift rapidly with last-minute bookings or return flights following the festival. If the calm continues, airlines could utilise the quieter hours for operational adjustments or minor maintenance tasks.
