Book excerpt: This book “Facets of Contemporary History”is a selection of research papers, presented in the International Conference on Contemporary History which was held on 30th and 31st January 2015. This conference was organized by the Department of History, Tourism and Travel Management, Ethiraj College for Women, Chennai. It gives us great pleasure to put together a selection of the papers for the public in the form of a book in the interest of research. Contemporary History refers to the history of the immediate past or that which can be expected to remain in living memory. While there are areas of history which have branched off from contemporary history such as social history and economic history this conference took a very broad look at contemporary events from not just a historical but also a social science perspective. This Book contains 6 Sections namely Political History, Socio-Cultural History, Gender, Economic History, Environment and Tourism. We would like to place on record the Management of the college for the moral and financial support extended in the conduct of the Conference and in the production of the book. Thanks are due to our respected Chairman of the Trust Board, Mr. V.M.Muralidharan for all his support and encouragement. Heartfelt thanks are due to Prof.Dr.Karu. Nagarajan Member Secretary, TAMIL NADU STATE COUNCIL FOR HIGHER EDUCATION for their generous financial Assistance towards the conduct of the Conference. We would be failing in our duty if we do not thank the faculty of the Department of History, Tourism and Travel Management for their support and encouragement in the conduct of the Conference.