BharatNotes Resilient Infrastructure
noun phraseUsage in a UPSC answer
India's Coalition for Disaster Resilient Infrastructure (CDRI), launched in 2019 and headquartered in New Delhi, works with member nations to develop infrastructure that can withstand climate change impacts and disaster shocks.
Synonyms
Antonyms
Word Family
resilient infrastructure (n phrase), resilient (adj), resilience (n), infrastructure (n)
Root
Latin resilire = to spring back (re- = back + salire = to jump) + Latin infra = below/beneath + struere = to build
Etymology
Resilience from Latin resiliens; infrastructure entered English in the 20th century from French infrastructure; India's Coalition for Disaster Resilient Infrastructure (CDRI), launched at the UN General Assembly in September 2019, is an Indian-led multilateral initiative promoting resilient infrastructure globally
Memory Hook
RESILIENT = springs BACK; INFRASTRUCTURE = the backbone of society; RESILIENT INFRASTRUCTURE = a backbone that springs back even after being hit hard
How This Word Works in UPSC Writing
Infrastructure designed and managed to withstand, adapt to and recover quickly from hazard events. It is the third Sendai priority, investing in disaster reduction for resilience, expressed in physical terms. The economic argument to make in GS3 is that resilience is cheaper than repeated reconstruction over an asset's life, though it requires higher upfront capital, which is exactly the budgeting tension that makes it a political rather than merely technical choice.
Don’t Confuse It With
Resilient infrastructure withstands and recovers from shocks. Robust design resists a defined load without the recovery dimension. Redundancy provides alternative capacity so failure of one element does not stop the system. Critical infrastructure denotes assets whose failure has cascading consequences, and these are the priority candidates for resilience investment.
Hindi Meaning
प्रत्यास्थ अवसंरचना (pratyāsth avasanrachnā) or आपदारोधी अवसंरचना.
Common Questions
- What is resilient infrastructure?
- Infrastructure designed and managed to withstand hazard events, continue functioning where possible, and recover quickly when damaged.
- Why is resilient infrastructure cost-effective despite higher upfront cost?
- Because avoiding repeated damage and reconstruction over the asset's life typically outweighs the additional capital spent on resilience at the design stage.
Seen in UPSC Question Papers
- Prelims 2024 — Disaster Management
- Prelims 2020 — Disaster Management
Real UPSC previous-year questions whose text uses “Resilient Infrastructure” — proof this word earns its place on your list.
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