Subarnarekha River (also called Swarnarekha River) flows through the Indian states of Jharkhand, West Bengal and Orissa.

As per tradition, gold was mined near the origin of the river at a village named Piska near Ranchi. This is why it was named Subarnarekha, meaning ‘streak of gold’. Legend has it that traces of gold were found in the river bed. Even now people look for traces of gold particles in its sandy beds. The name is a combination of two words meaning gold and line/streak in Indian languages.

After originating near Piska/ Nagri, near Ranchi, the capital of Jharkhand, the Subarnarekha traverses a long distance through RanchiSeraikela Kharsawan and East Singhbhum districts in the state. Thereafter it flows for shorter distances through Paschim Medinipur district in West Bengal for 83 kilometres (52 mi) and Balasore district of Orissa. There it flows for 79 kilometres (49 mi) and joins the Bay of Bengal near Talsari. The total length of the river is 470 kilometres (290 mi).

The basin of the Subarnarekha is smaller amongst the multi-state river basins in India. The rain-fed river covers a drainage area of 1.93 million hectares