The Daya River starts as a branch of the Kuakhai River at Saradeipur (near Badahati) in Orissa

Orissa

Orissa , officially Odisha since Nov 2011, is a state of India, located on the east coast of India, by the Bay of Bengal. It is the modern name of the ancient nation of Kalinga, which was invaded by the Maurya Emperor Ashoka in 261 BC. The modern state of Orissa was established on 1 April...

 state in India

India

India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...

. It is joined by the Malaguni River

Malaguni River

The Malaguni River is a Nullah or hill stream in Khurda District, Orissa state of India. It originates on the border of Ganjam District and Khurda District. It flows northeast, east and southeast through Khurda Tahasil, passes historic Golabai Sassan and joins the Daya River at , north of...

 below Golabai

Golabai

Golabai Sasan is a village in Khurda District, Orissa, India at .It is known for its medieval temple architecture. This settlement site is located on the north bank of the Malaguni River, North of Chilika lake....

 and flows through Khordha

Khordha district

Khordha is an administrative division of the state of Orissa, India. It was formed on April 1, 1993 by the division of former Puri District into Puri, Khurda and Nayagarh districts. In the year 2000 the district name was changed to Khordha. The district headquarters is Khordha Town, formerly...

 and Puri

Puri District

Puri being a coastal district of Orissa, is famous for its Historic antiquities, Religious sanctuaries, Architectural Grandeur, Sea-scape beauty,moderate climate.It holds a wealth of attraction for the visitors. It boasts of a continuous history from the 3rd Century B.C...

 districts before emptying into the north-eastern corner of Chilika Lake, 37 km (23 mi) km from its origin.

The historically important Dhauli

Dhauli

Dhauli hills are located on the banks of the river Daya, 8 km south of Bhubaneswar in Orissa . It is a hill with vast open space adjoining it, and has major Edicts of Ashoka engraved on a mass of rock, by the side of the road leading to the summit of the hill...

 hills are located on the banks of the Daya River, 8 km (5 mi) south of Bhubaneswar

Bhubaneswar

Bhubaneswar is the capital of the Indian state of Orissa, officially Odisha. The city has a long history of over 2000 years starting with Chedi dynasty who had Sisupalgarh near present-day Bhubaneswar as their capital...

. It is a hill with vast open space adjoining it, and has major Edicts of Ashoka

Ashoka

Ashok Maurya or Ashoka , popularly known as Ashoka the Great, was an Indian emperor of the Maurya Dynasty who ruled almost all of the Indian subcontinent from ca. 269 BC to 232 BC. One of India's greatest emperors, Ashoka reigned over most of present-day India after a number of military conquests...

 engraved on a mass of rock, by the side of the road leading to the summit of the hill. Dhauli hill is presumed to be the area where Kalinga War

Kalinga War

The Kalinga War was a war fought between the Mauryan Empire under Ashoka the Great and the state of Kalinga, a feudal republic located on the coast of the present-day Indian state of Orissa. The Kalinga war is one of the major battles in the History of India. Kalinga put up a stiff resistance,...

was fought.