New Delhi/Dhaka, Jul 5 (IANS): Moving beyond the row triggered by his reported remarks about Bangladesh, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh told his counterpart Sheikh Hasina over the phone that he was looking forward to his Dhaka visit Sep 6-7 and stressed that "a strong and productive partnership" was in the interest of the two countries as well as South Asia.

In a damage-control exercise aimed at assuaging hurt feelings in Bangladesh over his off-the-record remarks about anti-India sentiments in Bangladesh that became public, Manmohan Singh telephoned Sheikh Hasina and conveyed "his warm personal greetings to her and through her to the people of Bangladesh."

Ahead of Manmohan Singh's visit, India's External Affairs Minister S.M. Krishna will travel to Dhaka July 6 on a three-day trip that is expected to pacify hurt feelings in Bangladesh and set the stage for the prime minister's visit.

July promises to be an intense month for India's diplomatic thrusts in Bangladesh.

Sonia Gandhi, the chairman of the ruling United Progressive Alliance (UPA), is also likely to go to Dhaka July 25 to attend a conference on physically challenged and autistic children. During the visit, Gandhi will also call on Sheikh Hasina and foreign minister Dipu Moni.

According to informed sources, Home Minister P. Chidambaram may also go to Dhaka to seal an agreement on the boundary issue.

"Following the official announcement of his visit to Bangladesh on 6-7 September, PM Dr. Manmohan Singh called the Prime Minister of Bangladesh HE Sheikh Hasina, to say how much he was looking forward to the visit and to renewing contacts with his old friends there," India's external affairs ministry said in a statement here.

During the telephonic conversation, Sheikh Hasina said that she "personally and the people of Bangladesh were waiting eagerly to receive him and there were high expectations from the visit, which she hoped would be a historic one," the ministry said.