MARGAO, May 24 -- Team Herald

Call it a man-made disaster. South Western Railway's (SWR) double-tracking project has caused widespread environmental destruction in Issorcim, with residents alleging that unseasonal rain exposed the catastrophic impact of faulty construction methods which left their paddy fields buried under mud and the century-old drainage system in ruins.

It is pertinent to note that Issorcim falls in the Velsao-Pale-Issorcim Panchayat jurisdiction.

According to affected residents, the disaster stems from the Railway authorities destroying the century-old storm water tunnels that were built by British engineers beneath the existing single railway track. These tunnels, the locals say, were connected to an ancient

drain...