Panaji, Jun 26 (IANS): The Congress legislative party in Goa on Monday resolved to formally ask the Speaker to extend the session of the Goa legislative assembly by six days, from the existing 12 days.

Speaking to IANS, opposition leader and Congress MLA Chandrakant Kavlekar said there were many issues of critical importance in Goa which needed to be discussed in the budget session and now that Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar was back in Goa and attending office, more time was needed to discuss issues related to the mining ban, corruption, infrastructure.

The assembly session is scheduled to begin from July 19.

"We need more time than 12 days to discuss critical issues in the state. We have resolved to ask the Speaker to extend the sitting of the assembly to 18 days," Kavlekar said.

The budget session of the state assembly had to be cut short after Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar fell ill and the BJP legislators formally requested the opposition benches to wind up the session early in deference to Parrikar's ailment.

Soon after tabling the state budget, after a brief speech, Parrikar left for the US for three months for treatment of advanced pancreatic cancer.

"We, as the opposition, co-operated with the BJP and curtailed the last session by more than a week because of Parrikar's illness. Now we are going to ask the Speaker to extend this sitting because major issues facing Goa need to be discussed," Kavlekar said.