COLOMBO, June 16 (Xinhua) -- Sri Lankan hotels will need over 100,000 new workers with the number of star-class rooms expected to double in the next three years, Tourism Minister John Amaratunga said on Saturday.

Sri Lanka will receive new investments worth 2.8 billion U.S. dollars in its hospitality sector in the coming years and this has put a lot of pressure on Sri Lanka's Hotel and Tourism Industry to deliver thousands of new workers.

"Sri Lanka's rapidly growing tourism industry will see the addition of nearly 17,000 star class rooms in the next three years," Amaratunga said.

"We need over 100,000 new workers to serve in these hotels," he added.

To cater to the growing industry, the Tourism Ministry has expanded its reach by establishing new colleges to attract young students into the industry and train unemployed youth in rural and suburban areas.

According to Amaratunga, the government has granted approval for 316 new hotel projects while 113 are under construction and 161 are in operation. The number of rooms for which final approval has been granted stands at 17,991.

"So many hotels are opening up in Colombo that we may actually have to consider limiting new hotels from coming up in the future. Investors will be encouraged to open hotels away from the city," he said.

Sri Lanka's tourism industry which was once heavily scarred by a 30-year civil conflict has emerged as one of the leading foreign exchange earners with an increasing number of tourist arrivals.

India, China and Britain have emerged as the leading markets.