The Bundelkhand region of India is a semi-arid plateau, which consists of twelve districts of northern Madhya Pradesh and five districts of southern Uttar Pradesh. The region suffers from severe ecological degradation induced primarily by the factors such as soil degradation and deforestation. Temporary and long-term migration of villagers from the rural areas of the region in search of alternative sources of livelihood has become increasingly common. This situation has created a vast market for the short term land lease market in the region. Those people who are migrating from villages and farmers with uneconomical land holding find it profitable to lease out their land on short term annual land lease contracts.