Malakpura Refugee Camp, Shamli district:
A line of anxious parents crowd the makeshift medical tent at the Malakpur refugee camp.
Each of them carrying children, some as young as a few months complaining of chronic cold, fever, and, increasingly, upset stomachs.
Already, the bitter cold has proved fatal, claiming the lives of several children in the camp. (
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But inside the tent, a team of volunteer doctors from Kerala warn of a new menace.
Dr Samir Zainal Abedin told us that he has seen 10-15 cases for diarrhoea. He says this figure might go up.
In a worrying conclusion, he says "a senior medical officer has come and told us that this is a kind of viral diarrhoea and can spread very fast."
He says "the main cause is unhygienic surroundings, environment. Mainly flies, water mainly."
Everywhere in the camp, there are swampy, garbage infested pits. Not far from them, children sift through the dirt looking for tiny pieces of firewood that will help them stay warm.
The few sources of clean water for a thirsty camp come from hand pumps, in one case, not too far from a stagnant pool. To service a camp of 3,000 people, a single tanker is sent by the government. It is parked unattended, as children drink from it directly.
It is in keeping with the state government's policy of keeping an arms-length distance from these camps, which it sees as encroachments.
The government claims there is no threat any more in the villages, and that those living in camps must return. Only people from nine villages, worst-hit by the riots of last September, are allowed to not go back. But they have been given a compensation to shift out of the camps and find residence elsewhere.
The people of the camps contest this, saying there is still an atmosphere of tension in their villages, and they will not return.
In the absence of the government, the Islamic charities running the Malakpur camp say they have been stretched to breaking point.
Its convenor Gulshad Choudhury says they need a full time government doctor, clean water, and waterproof tents.
With a new diarrhoea outbreak looming, the icy cold, which has already claimed lives of the very young, still remains a threat. One of the last visitors to the medical tent was a four-month-old baby, crying in distress. "She has severe chest infection," Dr Abedin told us. "It is not looking good."