Bishop Thuruthikonam had taken over the leadership of the diocese as the fourth Bishop from Bishop Cornelius Elanjickel in 1988. Born in 1929 at Thukalassery near Thiruvalla in Pathanamthitta district, Bishop Thuruthikonam had an early initiation into spiritual life. He was ordained a priest in 1959 and served at various parishes in Central Travancore before being elevated as the chancellor and secretary to the then Bishop Ambrose Abasolo of Vijayapuram in 1966. In 1977, when Bishop Cornelius Elanjickel became the first indigenous Bishop of Vijayapuram, he was made the Pro Vicar General.