Achievements in Sports, Increased Employment Opportunities Highlighted at NDA's 'Mangal Milan' Meeting

New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi, senior Union ministers and leaders of National Democratic Alliance (NDA) constituent parties attended the coalition's weekly parliamentary meeting, 'Mangal Milan', on Tuesday, where presentations highlighted the government's achievements in sports and employment generation. The meeting, held in the Parliament House complex, was attended by BJP president Nitin Nabin, who was seated alongside Prime Minister Modi. It took place a day after the BJP suffered a defeat in the Bankipur Assembly by-election in Bihar, where the party's candidate lost to Jan Suraaj founder Prashant Kishore. The Bankipur by-election was necessitated after Nabin vacated the Assembly seat following his election to the Rajya Sabha and his appointment as BJP national president. Speaking to reporters after the meeting, BJP MP Manoj Tiwari said Union Sports Minister Mansukh Mandaviya delivered a detailed presentation on the government's efforts to strengthen Indian sports since 2014. According to Tiwari, the presentation highlighted India's improved performance in international competitions, including the Olympic Games, Asian Games and Commonwealth Games, attributing the achievements to policies introduced by the Modi government. The meeting also featured a presentation on employment generation, during which the government highlighted what it described as a significant increase in job opportunities for young people over the past decade. Tiwari said the presentation claimed that while 2.89 crore youth secured employment between 2004 and 2014 under the previous UPA government, around 17.1 crore employment opportunities were generated between 2014 and 2026 under the NDA government. The BJP MP added that members were also briefed on various social security initiatives implemented by the Centre. BJP MP P.P. Chaudhary described the meeting positively, remarking, "Mangal Milan mein Mangal hi hota hai," suggesting the weekly gathering was productive. Leaders from several NDA allies, including the Janata Dal (United), Janata Dal (Secular), Nationalist Congress Party, Shiv Sena and the Nationalist Congress Party (India), also attended the meeting. NCPI leader Sudip Bandyopadhyay, who recently joined the party after leaving the Trinamool Congress, said it was his first NDA parliamentary party meeting. "I am one of the senior-most parliamentarians in the country. All are united in the NCPI. It is a good experience," he said. Among those present at the meeting were Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, Home Minister Amit Shah, Agriculture Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan, External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar and several other senior ministers.