Sri Lankan President Gotabaya Rajapaksa on Monday appointed 17 Cabinet Ministers even while anti-government protests continue to pick steam following the economic and political crisis in the country. The new Ministers have been appointed with the aim to ensure the smooth functioning of the administration. They were sworn in at the President's house. This is the third Cabinet reshuffle carried out by President Rajapaksa.

While the new Cabinet consists of eight former Ministers, it will have a number of new faces, Colombo Page reported. On April 3, the entire cabinet of 26 Ministers except for Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa resigned from their respective portfolios amidst the worst economic crisis in the island's history. On the next day, President Rajapaksa had appointed four Ministers to maintain the legitimacy and stability of Parliament and other functions of the country.