The story
In 1941, when Sindh Kamalanavin was the Minister of Education under Plaek Phibunsongkhram's premiership, the idea of expanding higher education to provincial areas was first proposed. Mom Luang Pin Malakul, the director of Triam Udom Suksa School at the time, was asked to provide advice on the establishment of a university in the provinces. But when the Greater East Asia War broke out, these plans ultimately went on hold.
After the end of the war, the people of Chiang Mai, led by Ki and Kimhaw Nimmanhaeminda, called for the provision of higher education in the regions and urged the government to establish a university in Chiang Mai Province. This movement gained strong momentum, and one form of public expression during the campaign was the dissemination of printed cards conveying opinions and demands, which were distributed among students and the general public.
A resolution to establish a university in the Chiang Mai province was finally approved by the Sarit Thanarat's Cabinet in 1960, with plans to start classes in 1964. Mom Luang Pin Malakul chaired the preparatory committee for the establishment of Chiang Mai University while he served as the Minister of Education. He carefully and diligently spent an extensive amount of time in the preparations, overseeing every aspect, which included defining the institution's mission and establishment policies, surveying the site, planning the university's layout, developing curricula and teaching arrangements, developing facilities, and laying the foundation for higher education.
The Chiang Mai University Act was promulgated on 15 January 1964 and published in the Royal Gazette on 21 January, coming into force on the day following its publication in the Royal Gazette. The university officially commenced its first academic instruction on 18 June 1964. In its initial phase, three faculties were established as the foundation of all academic disciplines: the Faculty of Humanities, the Faculty of Social Sciences, and the Faculty of Science.
In the following year, King Bhumibol Adulyadej and Queen Sirikit presided over the official opening ceremony of the university on 24 January 1965, accompanied by Princess Ubol Ratana and Crown Prince Vajiralongkorn.
From Wikipedia’s article on Chiang Mai University, shared under CC BY-SA 4.0.4