It teaches them to think and question because each of their actions, they now know, has an effect on their futures. They look forward to education, not just literacy. They now understand the meaning of democracy at an everyday level. In a country beset by age old tradition, religious and caste prejudices the democratic functioning of their cooperatives gives dignity to those who have had none for the whole of India's history spread over thousands of years. Another aspect ignored, but just as important, has been the role of women.
Agriculture involves the growing of one or two or at the most three crops a year.
These fetch the farmer money as and when the crop is harvested and sold. But if he has just one or two cows or buffaloes they provide milk throughout the year. This milk once sold goes to keep the home fires burning. Since the number of animals in his home is so few, it is the woman of the house who looks after them. This gives her a level of economic independence she has never before had.