Although for the time being Intel's Core 2 processors have surpassed AMD in performance, desibond is correct in saying that AMD still presents better VFM in budget and some mid-level systems, especially for gaming.
I bought the following from my source in Hyderabad 3 months ago for someone on a tight budget:
Gigabyte GA-M68SM-S2---2950
AMD X2 4800+------------3225
1GB DDR2/800------------- 975
160GB SATA--------------1900
Mercury 8600GT 256MB---3300
KBD Intex MM--------------175
Mouse optical--------------100
Cabinet ATX---------------975
SMPS---------------------400
SPK SBS A300------------1250
UPS Supercomp-----------1300
LG DVD Writer------------1100
Used 17" CRT monitor-----2000
Total 19,650.00
The GA-M68SM-S2 is of an older generation with lower graphics than the 780G, but very good otherwise and much cheaper. The money saved on the mobo alone can almost pay for the 8600GT gfx card.
As I said above, the customer was on a very tight budget. You can make some changes such as -
You said you don't need a new UPS - subtract 1.3 k
Add another 1GB RAM - add ~1k
Larger HDD - add ~0.5k
Better keyboard and mouse - add ~0.5k
New 19" LCD monitor in place of used CRT - add ~7k
New total = approx 27k.
This is still well within your budget even if things are a bit more expensive in your area.