Nine Clean Plant Centres will be established across the country as part of the recently approved Rs 1,765.67 crore Clean Plant Programme (CPP), the government said on Sunday. The programme aims to boost India’s horticulture sector by providing virus-free planting material, an official statement said. Of the nine clean plant centres, three will be set up in Maharashtra at a cost of Rs 300 crore: Pune for grapes, Nagpur for oranges, and Solapur for pomegranates. The government said that the programme will increase yields, enhance fruit quality, and protect small-scale farmers from biotic and abiotic threats. Further, a national-level laboratory is to be set up in Pune for research on original plant species under CPP.