Most flights flew in and out and public transport was available outside the airport terminal on Thursday.

Airport officials said hundreds of passengers who were booked on Thursday’s flights had arrived at the airport on Wednesday night fearing they might not get transport once the 16-hour lockdown kicked in at 6am. The passengers stayed the night in the departure lounge.

Buses and yellow taxis were parked outside the terminal for arriving passengers.

In the city, police allowed cars to move if they were convinced they were headed for the airport. There was apprehension about availability of public transport because the state government had not included flights on the list of exempted services.

Passengers who had arrived on Wednesday night wait inside the airport. Telegraph picture

Tumpa Dalui, in her early 20s, arrived from Bangalore with her aunt Sunita Sardar. Tumpa, a resident of the Sunderbans, was staying with her father, who works in Bangalore, over the past few months.

“We had arranged for a vehicle to pick us up from the airport,” said Tumpa, who arrived on an IndiGo flight in the morning. The vehicle was stopped on its way to the airport by the police at Ghatakpukur, in South 24-Parganas.

On being alerted by the driver, Tumpa clicked a picture of her boarding pass and WhatsApped it to him. The driver was allowed to proceed after he showed the cops the image of the boarding pass.

Airport officials said 42 flights had taken off and as many landed during the day. Air India cancelled two flights and IndiGo one.

“About 400 people who had flights to catch today had arrived at the airport on Wednesday night. Usually, around 50 passengers now arrive the night before,” airport director Kaushik Bhattacharya said. “Usually, passengers are allowed to enter the terminal maximum four hours before departure, but this was an exceptional situation. Also, it was raining outside.”

Sarmistha Goswami, a resident of Ishapore in North 24-Parganas, was booked on an IndiGo flight to Raipur. The flight was to take off at 3.05pm but she arrived at the airport at 4.30am.

“My brother drove me to the airport. We started from Ishapore around 3am so my brother could return home before the lockdown started,” she said.