``The import was rejected by city buyers, who did not like its dark red skin, large size and shapeless appearance,'' confirms Rajan Kachi, chief administrator, Agriculture Produce Market Committee. ``We had to send the onions to other cities,'' he says. The local produce meets the city's needs, while the imported onion is being sent to less finicky buyers in Mumbai, Andhra Pradesh, Kanpur, Aurangabad, Chittoor and parts of South Maharashtra.

Pune customers prefer to stick to the medium-quality onion available at the marketyard at Rs 120 to Rs 200 per ten kg. This the kind of onion most in demand -- in city markets, it is availabe at virtually a steal-- Rs 12 to Rs 15 a kg, and is lapped up by citizens aswell as vada-pav, bhel and pav-bhaji vendors.

Consumers in posh localities like Phule Market, Sind Society, Prabhat Road, Koregaon Park and M G Road are vying with five-star hotels for the most expensive variety, available at Rs 25 a kg.

Of the 21 tonnes of imported onion that came to the market two days ago, only 12 kg survived, and was sent to other cities, where it was sold for Rs 22 a kg. The city has not felt the pinch yet, as it needs just 50 tonnes of onion a day, a need met by five of the 40 trucks that come to the market everyday.