Aamir Khan, Dropped By Centre, To Be Ambassador For Key Maharashtra Scheme

Mumbai: Actor Aamir Khan, who was recently replaced as the face of the "Incredible India" campaign, is likely to be the ambassador for a key project of the Maharashtra government.

He is likely to be the ambassador of "drought-free Maharashtra" and will promote a flagship irrigation scheme in villages, sources say.

Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis is expected to make an announcement today.

The scheme, "Jalyukt Shivar Abhiyan", aims at making 25,000 villages in the state drought-free in five years. State government officials say with over 3200 farmer deaths in the past year, it is important to promote the project in a big way.

Maharashtra's BJP-led government has opted for the actor as a spokesperson at a time the Centre preferred to not to continue with him as the face of its Incredible India campaign to market the country to tourists abroad.

Aamir Khan was also by the Chief Minister's side during a cultural show on Sunday at the state's "Make In India" event, which had to be cancelled when a massive fire broke out.

The 50-year-old star's contract for the national tourism campaign was not renewed after a huge controversy in November when he commented on alleged "intolerance" in the country.  He had said that his wife Kiran Rao was so concerned that she had wondered out loud about relocating from India.

Amid reports that the actor was being punished for those comments, Union Tourism Minister Mahesh Sharma said that he featured in the Incredible India campaign through an ad agency, McCann Erickson, whose contract with the government had ended. The government has now recruited megastar Amitabh Bachchan as its spokesperson.

Reacting to the change, Aamir Khan said at the time: "It is the prerogative of the government to decide whether they need a brand ambassador for any campaign, and if so, who that ambassador should be. I respect the decision of the government to discontinue with my services."