MAM
OUP India teams with Adobe to boost digital learning in schools
NEW DELHI: Oxford University Press India has taken a bold step in strengthening digital literacy by partnering with Adobe to upgrade its next-generation computer science curriculum. The collaboration brings Adobe Express for education into OUP’s textbook series MegaByte and Cyber Master, designed for students from grades III to VIII.
As classrooms across India shift from chalkboards to digital dashboards, the National Education Policy 2020 and the National Curriculum Framework 2023 place digital literacy at the heart of future-ready education. OUP’s move aligns with this national push, ensuring that young learners gain access to creative tools that help them design visuals, animations and videos while developing safe and smart digital habits.
MegaByte and Cyber Master introduce students to computer science through a mix of concepts and hands-on learning. The series covers a sweeping range of emerging fields including artificial intelligence, robotics, data science, the internet of things, augmented and virtual reality, digital creativity and 3D printing. The aim is to foster curiosity and confidence early, helping students build a strong foundation for advanced technological learning.
OUP India managing director Sukanta Das, said the partnership brings classrooms closer to the digital-first world students now inhabit. He noted that combining the curriculum with Adobe Express encourages young minds to treat technology as a creative playground rather than a passive tool.
Adobe vice president and general manager for student product and marketing Mala Sharma, highlighted the growing importance of creativity and AI literacy. She said integrating Adobe Express into OUP’s textbooks will give students across India the chance to explore problem-solving and collaboration through digital creation.
For learners in grades VI to VIII, the curriculum also introduces real coding environments like HTML5, Python and JavaScript, ensuring students gain practical computational thinking skills. Compatibility with Windows 10 and 11 and Microsoft Office platforms allows seamless adaptation as students progress to higher studies.
A standout element of the programme is MegaNext, a future-skills booklet that connects classroom lessons with real-world opportunities in AI, FinTech and Green Tech. It encourages students to imagine how technology can shape careers and communities in the years ahead.
With this refreshed curriculum, MegaByte and Cyber Master step beyond traditional textbooks, offering gateways to creativity, coding and emerging technologies. The initiative aims to equip India’s young learners with the adaptability and fluency needed to thrive in an increasingly digital future.
Brands
Dabur buys minority stake in Ras Beauty for Rs 60 crore
Dabur Ventures deal backs fast-growing luxury skincare brand
MUMBAI: Dabur India Limited has dipped into the world of luxury skincare, signing a definitive agreement to acquire a minority stake in Ras Beauty Private Limited for Rs 60 crore. The investment marks the first bet from Dabur Ventures, the FMCG major’s Rs 500 crore platform set up in October 2025 to back high-potential, new-age direct-to-consumer brands.
Founded in Raipur by Shubhika Jain, her sister Suramya Jain and their mother Sangeeta Jain, Ras Beauty has grown from a family-led passion project into a fast-scaling “Farm-to-Face” skincare label. Its range of face elixirs, serums and moisturisers blends essential oils with nature-derived actives, striking a balance between botanical purity and laboratory precision.
The numbers tell their own story. Ras has clocked a three-year Cagr of around 75 per cent and an annual run rate of approximately Rs 100 crore, all while maintaining strong gross margins. That growth has been fuelled by a digital-first approach, in-house R&D and manufacturing, and a sharp focus on clean, sustainable sourcing.
Dabur India executive director and group head corporate strategy Abhinav Dhall, said the company was drawn to Ras’s distinct positioning at the intersection of nature, science and luxury. He added that the premium beauty segment is poised for robust expansion over the coming decade, and that Ras is well placed to capture that opportunity.
For Ras, the partnership is as much about scale as it is about shared philosophy. Co-founder and CEO Shubhika Jain said Dabur’s 141-year legacy of building trusted, purpose-led brands makes it a natural ally. The capital infusion, she noted, will help accelerate the brand’s omnichannel footprint, deepen research capabilities and invest in team and brand building, with an eye on establishing Ras as a leading Indian luxury skincare name both domestically and overseas.
With this move, Dabur is not just investing in a skincare label. It is placing an early wager on India’s growing appetite for premium, conscious beauty, and signalling that heritage FMCG players are ready to play in the new-age D2C arena.
