Indians rally behind housewife's bid to set map right in US

She heads no protest group. Neither does she want to be called an activist.
But this Indian housewife''s fight in the US against "incorrect depiction of Kashmir" in globes a leading US toy-maker has found unprecedented support from the Diaspora and people from India. People have been writing to her — expressing solidarity, promising to take her fight forward.
Purvi Master reacted to the globe on the toy like "any Indian would to such a depiction, showing Kashmir as an independent country".In Ahmedabad recently to visit her parents, the thought of the flawed globe hasn''t left her mind as calls keep pouring in. While friends congratulate her for her "bold step," her husband calls from their Burlington home in the US to keep her informed of the reactions he has been receiving.
"My reaction on seeing the globe was spontaneous. It came as a shock. Now my mailbox is flooded with letters from Indians, letters of praise, support and those expressing anguish and anger," says Purvi Master, a housewife in the Burlington city of Massachussetts.
It all began when Purvi bought a globe for her son from a shop in Burlington and found this anomaly. She then began her protest, shooting off letters to the Indian embassy in Washi ngton, to the toy-making firm, LeapFrog, and all Indians she knew in the US.
"The letters I am receiving are so touching. They express genuine concern. Now I feel good that I initiated it," said Purvi. "Being a Kashmiri, this is an even more real issue for me. This toy manufacturing company obviously hasn''t done enough research, or what seems more likely is that it has been misled.
Kashmir is not the state, ''Jammu and Kashmir'' is. It comprises three distinct regions — Jammu, Kashmir and Ladakh, very much like Saurashtra and Kutch in Gujarat. Kashmir is the part that is known as the Valley because of its topography.
So it is definitely incorrect to refer to the state as just Kashmir," says Inderjeet Raina in his mail to Purvi and her husband Jayesh, who works with an MNC in the US.
Adds Raina, "You can tell them that you know a Kashmiri who has an Indian passport. So, what does that make his nationality to be? Keep it up. If you need any help with historical facts about Kashmir or anything else, count on me."
"The map used the CIA does not depict the entire Kashmir region as a separate country as alleged in LeapFrog toys. What can be more authentic to LeapFrog than CIA worldfact book. Their research team was obviously wrong in their determination of Kashmir region," says another letter.
"I have been asking all those who are writing to us to write to the company. This can help build up public opinion and they will be forced to act," says Purvi.
Some have already written to LeapFrog after the company''s response to Purvi''s attempt to point out the mistake left many "dissatisfied".
In their reply, LeapFrog mentions: "When we produce toy with world information, our research team uses the best and most accurate information available at the time, to include in the product content."
A letter from the company also mentions that "if you find the globe unsatisfactory, you may return it for a full refund, or exchange it for another product of similar value."