AN INVESTIGATION INTO THE ARTISANAL MINING OF TIN AND COLUMBITE ON ABANDONED MINES OF BISICHI JENTA LTD, KURU (NARAGUTA SHEET 168) PLATEAU STATE, NORTH CENTRAL NIGERIA

 The discovery of tin on the Jos Plateau in the early 1900s heralded the influx of several foreign and indigenous mining companies. Mention must be made especially of events in the 1950s when the introduction of mechanized mining by such mining companies like the Bisichi Jenta Ltd resulted in higher production of minerals. Bisichi Jenta Ltd a British mining company held several mining leases on the Jos Plateau and the neighboring states of the present Adamawa and Nasarawa States. An investigation into the mining activities of this company suggests that the company stood out amongst it pairs especially with regards to the effective deployment of hydraulic mining equipments and specifically the hydraulic Jigs which were later to be redesigned with the ingenuity of a Nigerian Engineer to meet local needs and consequently earning the patented name of Jentar Jigs internationally. The mining of cassiterite along old steams in the Kuru area witnessed the exploitation of tin and Columbite initially in alluvial deposits at the downstream areas and graduating into elluvial deposits midstream and subsequently upstream to the primary source consisting of decomposed granite. The hydraulic mining operation in the 1920s concentrated in the mining of tin and Columbite deposits with cut-off grades of more than 0.6g/ton. The present artisanal mining however, is being carried out on abandoned low grades of 0.1g/ton. The low grade notwithstanding, at the present economic value (local market price) of N4, 500.00/Kg ($27.00/Kg) still provides a formidable source of income to the artisanal miners. The mining activity which involves the random sinking of mining pits for the exploitation of the mineral, with devastating effect on the environment as opened pits are not reclaimed after mining. The study has revealed the existence of Six (6) Mining Clusters providing employment to over 2500 artisanal miners. The miners are involved in sub-surface mining of tin and Columbite at one of such Clusters (the Main Mining Cluster) alone record daily earnings of between N100,000.00 to N150, 000.00 accruing to each active mine pit of about ten(10) team members of local miners. The total earnings per day for the twenty five (25) studied active pits on the average stand at about N3, 125,000.00 million (about $18,600 dollars). The individual average daily earnings of about N 12,500($74.00 dollars) makes economic sense for these miners especially when viewed happening in a national economy with a per capita earning of less than $1 dollar (N168.00) per day.