Potential interaction of metals tolerant bacterial strain (Bacillus cereus) with Para grass (Brachiaria mutica) for remediation of metal contaminated soil

•Soil quality nearby the industrial area is beyond the permissible limits.•Bacillus cereus showed considerable metal tolerance along with PGP activities.•B. mutica effectively removed the metals from soil under the influence of B. cereus.•Test bacterial species effectively mobilize and absorb the metals from soil.•B. cereus showed optimistic effect on metal absorption potential of B.mutica. Anthropogenic activities are severely polluting the environment, particularly the soil. The quality of soil near the industrial area was investigated as well as the positive interaction between metal tolerance Bacillus cereus and Brachiaria mutica under greenhouse conditions. Furthermore, the PGP attributes of this B. cereus, as well as their impact on B. mutica growth and metal removal potential, were investigated. The soil quality parameters pH, EC, NPK, As, Cd, Cr, Fe, Mn, Pb, and Zn were also investigated. Standard methods were used to determine the physicochemical properties of the test soil sample. The metal tolerance and pollutant remediation potential of Bacillus cereus and Brachiaria mutica, as well as their positive interactions, were determined using the agar plate and greenhouse methods, respectively. Most of the soil parameters were found that were not meet the permissible standards. B. cereus possesses considerable tolerance to heavy metals (As, Cd, Mn, Cr, Fe, Pb, & Zn) up to 250 mg L-1 dosage. B. cereus also showed remarkable metal mobilization and metal absorption potential and significant PGP natures, which enhance the growth and essential biomolecule content as well as remediation potential of B. mutica. [Display omitted]