MUMBAI: The Advertising Standards Council of India (ASCI), the self-regulatory organisation of advertising content and protecting the interest of consumers in India has announced the retirement of ASCI secretary general Alan Collaco, effective 30 May. Shweta Purandare has been named as the successor. She will start her new role from 1 June. The council has also announced the appointment of Ashutosh Geedh as its chief administrative officer.

Purandare has over 22 years of industry experience and was earlier associated with some of the eminent companies such as Cipla, Merind, P&G and L’Oreal. She has been actively associated with ASCI as the chief operations officer since the past one year. In her new role, she will continue to handle consumer complaints process. In addition, Purandare will be leading marketing, public relations and social media initiatives for ASCI.

Ashutosh Geedh who will be joining as chief administrative officer will take charge from 5 May. He has done his MBA from the Asian Institute of Management, Manila. His experience spans over 19 years in companies such as Patni Computers, LIC, Securex Capital Advisors and Towering Heights Telecommunications. In his new role, Geedh will broadly be responsible for administration, finance and accounts, HR, legal, I.T. and internal and external Communication. He will report to the secretary general.

ASCI chairman Partha Rakshit said, “Alan will be greatly missed by ASCI members for his tremendous commitment to excellence. While we are indebted to him for his exemplary service to ASCI’s mission, we are also confident that his successor, Shweta, will demonstrate strong leadership skills and analytical insights, further supporting the association’s vision and mission.”

“Also, the appointment of Ashutosh will further strengthen the association’s operations, thereby ensuring seamless functioning across various departments and external bodies,” added Rakshit.

“I am grateful to the ASCI team for offering me the desired platform to get associated with India’s largest self-regulatory voluntary organisation of the advertising sector. I am deeply honoured to have had the opportunity to be in the core team of ASCI, supporting the association’s vision of protecting the interests of the consumers,” concluded Collaco.