Shri Shailendra Kumar Gupta was born on September 9, 1942. He earned a Bachelor of Science degree from Lucknow University and a degree in electrical engineering from Roorkee University in 1964, where he was a Gold Medallist.

He was immediately absorbed as a Lecturer in Electrical Engineering at Roorkee University.

Mr. Gupta joined the Indian Telecom Service in September 1965 and held various responsible positions in the Department of Telecommunications and Mahanagar Telephone Nigam Limited in the fields of planning, installation, maintenance, training and management of telecommunication systems.Some of the important postings were:

• Chief General Manager,Gujarat Telecom Circle.
• Principal General Manager(Operations),Mahanagar Telephone Nigam Ltd.,Delhi.
• General Manager (Projects Management),General Manager (Long Distance) and General Manager (South),Mahanagar Telephone Nigam Ltd.,Delhi
• General Manager (Corporate Office),Mahanagar Telephone Nigam Ltd.,Delhi.
• General Manager Telephones,Jaipur
• District Manager Telephones,Allahabad.
• Director Switching and Deputy General Manager,Advanced Level Telecom Training Centre,Ghaziabad-an ITU/Government of India establishment.
• Assistant Director General,Telecom Headquarters,New Delhi.

He was deputed through the United Nations to Malawi, Africa as a switching telecom expert during 1982-83.

Mr. Gupta first took charge of Videsh Sanchar Nigam Limited (VSNL) as its chairman and managing director in September 1999 He has been closely associated with various international telecom bodies including INTELSAT, the Commonwealth Telecommunication Organisation (CTO), Asia Pacific Telecommunications (APT), the International Maritime Satellites (INMARSAT), and the South Asian Association for Regional Co-operation (SAARC) Telecom Projects.

In pursuance to the government policy and consequent to disinvestment of VSNL in February 2002,Vsnl was acquired by the Tata Group.