MAM
Dept. of Consumer Affairs and ASCI join hands
MUMBAI: Strengthening its mission towards self-regulation in advertising, Department of Consumer Affairs (DoCA), of the Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food & Public Distribution, has partnered with Advertising Standard Council of India (ASCI) to augment the efforts on stopping misleading advertisements.
The collaboration will see joint efforts to evaluate and pass strictures against the violators. The six priority sectors that would be covered are: agriculture and food, health, education, housing, financial services and e-commerce.
DoCA will redirect the complaints received by it to ASCI to avoid duplication of processing of complaints against advertisements that is already under process by ASCI. The complaints will be evaluated across media like print, packaging, internet, outdoor, wall paintings, posters, bill boards, etc.
Commenting on the partnership, DoCA additional secretary G Gurucharan said, “The problem of misleading advertisements and the consequent unfair trade practices that arise is widespread – across sectors, mediums and geographies. DoCA’s effort is to build a coalition of stakeholders to combat this menace – partnering with ASCI is an important step.”
ASCI chairman Narendra Ambwani added, “It’s a moment of pride for ASCI to have received such support from DoCA. Earlier our work has been recognised by various government bodies like Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (MIB), Medical Council of India (MCI) etc. It’s highly motivating to see such developments and this partnership has widened ASCI’s scope for complaints.”
While the operational aspects of this collaboration between DoCA and ASCI is being worked upon, DoCA has requested ASCI to flag off advertisements that are in clear violation of the law (e.g. claims regarding cure of diseases such as diabetes, cancer, sexual impotence, leucoderma (white spots), paralysis etc. covered under the Drugs and Magic Remedies Act). This would enable prompt action against such non-scrupulous advertisers and protect consumer interest.
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Google Cloud names Vaibhav Gawde as head of customer engineering, Apac data management and database cloud
Tech veteran to lead customer engineering for data and database cloud across Apac
SINGAPORE: Google Cloud has elevated Vaibhav Gawde to head of customer engineering for Apac data management and database cloud, expanding his leadership remit across the Asia Pacific region.
In his new role, Gawde will lead teams that work with some of the region’s largest enterprises, helping them modernise their data foundations and adopt advanced database and cloud technologies. His focus will be on enabling scalable data architectures, accelerating innovation and supporting organisations as they navigate complex digital transformation journeys.
Based in Singapore, Gawde will steer Google Cloud’s customer engineering organisation for its database business across Apac. A key part of his mandate includes shaping the company’s “data-to-AI” go-to-market strategy, positioning modern data infrastructure as a stepping stone for generative AI adoption.
He will also work closely with sales leadership to drive cloud consumption among large enterprises while removing technical roadblocks that often slow digital transformation. Internally, he is tasked with nurturing a practitioner-first culture aimed at attracting and retaining top technical talent across the region.
Gawde joined Google in 2021 and previously served as head of customer engineering for financial services in India before moving into the role of principal architect for financial services across Apac. In those roles, he led C-suite engagements with banks and insurers to design AI-led cloud and data strategies.
Before Google, Gawde spent over a decade at Oracle, where he led India sales consulting and worked on technology strategies spanning cloud infrastructure, databases and enterprise systems for large BFSI and telecom clients.
With more than three decades in enterprise technology, Gawde’s career has moved from building mission-critical infrastructure to helping businesses rethink their data strategy in the age of AI. His latest promotion signals Google Cloud’s growing focus on data platforms as the bedrock of the next wave of digital innovation.
