Donetsk, Dec 21 - DAN. DPR authorities have paid one-time Victory Day and Miner’s Day benefits to 165 residents of Kiev-controlled areas of Donetsk Region since the humanitarian assistance programme was launched, the Republic’s Labour and Social Polcy Ministry press service told Donetsk News Agency on Thursday.

“On 20 December, DPR finished the provision of one-time Victory Day and Miner’s Day benefits that were paid in accordance with DPR head Alexander Zakharchenko’s decree No 45 and 196 as part of the Donbass People reunification humanitarian programme in 2017,” the press service said. “Over this period, 165 compatriots received tangible help.”

DPR began to pay benefit on 15 March 2017. Initially, they could be collected at post-offices of frontline towns and townships and later on at welfare and government services centres in the vicinity of crossing points Mayorsk (Gorlovka), Alexandrovka (Donetsk’s Petrovskiy district) and Oktyabr (Novoazovskiy district).

The sum of Victory Day payments ranged between 6,000 ($102) and 10,000 rubles ($170) depending on the recipient's category, while Miner’s Day payments amounted to 3,000 ($51) to 8,000 ($136) rubles. *jk