And they sometimes spread their mediation skills further. In the parched village of Baruipur, where Mina Das now lives, a battalion of 250 girls and boys marched to the fields of rich, hostile landholders who had refused to share the waters of the village pond, and began digging ditches to allow water to reach plots of other farmers. They were threatened by hired hoodlums, who said the mini-canals were cutting through fertile land. Mina Das attributes such successes to the training that breeds self-confidence. When you plant an idea in a fresh mind, it takes root in the child's subconscience and will not let go.
Training is both hands-on and theoretical.
While the volunteers take to their village activities, learning by dirtying their hands, they also meet once in a week at the Nishtha center to discuss the social and cultural history of their village and hear lessons on legal, health and women's issues. This is crucial, because local institutions have historically isolated themselves from their communities, especially from women. Women in most villages, for example, cringe with fear at the thought of mailing a letter at the post office, or they depend on husbands to take them to a doctor. And men place their thumbprints on papers they cannot read when the documents are thrust at them by local functionaries None of this consciousness-raising has been easy. Today all our elders talk to us with respect.