During the 1970s, the barter system was used in much of rural India, where people exchanged essential commodities for their living. Since then, new technologies have created more opportunities for income generation nationally; however, rural farmers have become poorer in relative terms during this period, with landlessness becoming increasingly endemic. Seventy percent of India’s population depend on agriculture for their livelihood sources, out of which most are small farmers. In previous years, farmers mostly cultivated tobacco, but then gradually started taking up cotton, chilli, or other commercial cash crops. Continuous cultivation without rotation and the unlimited use of fertilizers and pesticides has depleted the fertility of the soil. Heavy losses in cotton and paddy cultivation