Sri Lanka's cabinet expanded to 54 ministers last Thursday, compounding logistical problems for parliamentary staff and government officials who are struggling to find them a big enough meeting rooms, office space and official vehicles.

The government also brought in two more junior ministers to take the total number of ministers, non-cabinet ministers and deputy ministers to an unprecedented 108.

The London based Guinness World Records says they don't monitor jumbo sized cabinets of ministers as yet, but are willing to open a category, if a formal request is made.

Anyone keen on creating a category to include Sri Lanka, can make a formal request of the record through their website ( www.guinnessworldrecords.com), the company's Communications Officer, Amarilis Espinoza said.

"It will then be decided by our record management team, if the new category is suitable," she said in an email interview.

Sri Lanka's 225-member parliament now includes 108 legislators (out of the 121 government members) who hold some portfolio in Rajapakse's cabinet.

"The tax payers will have to now cough out a monthly total of 6.9 million rupees simply to maintain three tiers of portfolio holding politicians," the independent Sunday Leader newspaper said last week.

But others say the cost may be underestimated.

Transparency International's local representative J C Weliamuna said last month that some ministries were paying 300,000 rupees a month (2900 US dollars) to rent super luxury SUVs for the minister.

Agriculture Minister Maithripala Sirisena has questioned the cost of the mega-cabinet to the public purse.

Rajapakse's former ally, the Marxist JVP or People's Liberation Front, said the huge cabinet for a country of 19.5 million people had made Sri Lanka the laughing stock of the world.

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